Once upon a time a Shy Musume
by chidoriochibi
Summary: Ryuzaki Sakuno 1st Year; our heroine who starts her senior high school life in Rikkai Dai Fuzoku. Yukimura Seiichi, the hero; labeled as the most beautiful man, prince charming of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku. What happens when a shy girl meets her Prince Charming?
1. A Brand New Morning

AN: Minna-san, Konnichi ha. This is mi-chan again. How's everyone doing? This is my first attempt to write another crack pairing. I've always wanted to write a YukiSaku fanfiction.

Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume

Genre: Humor/Romance/Drama

Pairing: Yukimura/Sakuno

Time frame: Sakuno in Senior High (15), Year 1, Yukimura Seiichi (17/18) in Senior High Year 3. (In Japan, there will be 3 years for Junior High and 3 years for Senior High. All new semester starts in spring).

Scene: Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku

Note: For Japanese/Chinese, surname/family name/last name comes first.

Standard Disclaimer: Tenpuri belongs to Konomi-sensei. (Yah, he has a sexy voice)

Warning: Sakuno-centric. Please do not continue if you're not a big Sakuno fans. Could be super OOC, a little paranoid, readers are advised to stop reading if you find this disturbing.

"…" denotes speech

'…' denotes thoughts

"…" _denotes flashback_

* * *

Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume 

Chapter 1: A Brand New Morning

* * *

Today is the beginning of her new day, her new life and also her first day as senior high school student; she thought blissfully as she stood in front of the enormous entrance of a well known school, Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku. 

'Sakuno, fight!!' she noted inwardly as she braced all her courage; she took her first step to enter the school compound when something happened.

Yes, before she could even take a second steps, she was hit by an unidentified object and due to the impact; she collapsed instantly.

"Hey, are you okay?" She heard faint voices of students calling her with concerns before falling into unconscious state.

Teachers came in minutes later; clearing the spectators who stopped by and watch.

"What happened to her?" A teacher asked.

"We don't know" replied some students in unison.

"I saw some flying object hit on her head" one eyewitness confirmed.

"Anyway, we need to carry her to the infirmary for treatment" another teacher suggested "Who will volunteer to take up this task?"

"I don't mind though…" one male student said with a cheeky grin "She's cute afterall"

"Let me do it" another male student said.

It turns out that more male students are fighting over the task to bring the girl to the infirmary.

* * *

The little havoc finally stops when someone picked the unconscious girl from the teacher's arm and proceeds to the infirmary. 

"Hey!!" a guy yelled but regretted that he did it as soon as he registered the person who took the girl a while ago was none other than the well known tennis vice captain, one of the three demons, the majestic Sanada Genichiro.

"Sensei, I'll take care of her" he said somberly with his pair of renowned cold eyes fixed on the crowd.

"So…sou? If that's what Sanada-kun wants" a teacher stammered upon sensing the emperor's majestic aura. Not only the students; even as for the teachers; no one dares to go against what Sanada sets.

"Please excuse us" with a polite bow; the emperor head towards the infirmary.

Together with him; there came along other Rikkai Dai's tennis club members. Kuwahara Jackal was pulling one side of Kirihara's ears.

They heard the team's captain, Yukimura Seiichi reprimanded the junior.

"That was an easy serve to nullify and yet you let it went pass you"

"…" Akaya preferred to keep quiet. He already knew the super strength of his captain's serving and if he'd attempt to nullify that ball; he might break his racket.

'No, my arm' he reconfirmed inwardly.

"Ah, so she was hit by a tennis ball directed by Yukimura-san" one student muttered softly.

"I wondered if the girl will be okay" another said.

* * *

"Wow?! What happened?" The school nurse asked anxiously. 

"She got hit by a tennis ball" the group said in unison except the three demons.

"Well, lay her on bed first, Sanada-kun" she directed.

"I thought that there is a warning sign installed few kilometers away from the tennis training ground?"

"She didn't get hit within the perimeter of the training ground…" Masaharu Niou explained.

"Yeah, the useless junior caused the problem" Marui Bunta muttered nonchalantly "He failed to nullify that serve directed by our captain"

"What?" Akaya felt arrows of criticism attacking him harshly and right now he felt that he's devastated. He ought to defend his reputation "But…but…"

Before he stood up for himself, the captain came forth to talk to the nurse.

"We're sorry for troubling you, Sensei"

"No…that was nothing" she blushed upon seeing the beautiful young man talking to her politely.

"I'll examine her while the rest of you can go back to your respective classroom. Class is about to start" she said thoughtfully.

"Sensei, I'll stay here and wait until she wakes up" Yukimura said suggestively.

"Eh?!" Sanada, Renji and Niou stared at him while the rest shrieked in unison.

"But…"

"Please" he requested seriously for the second time.

"Fine; you can stay" at this moment, she couldn't get herself to continue further, especially when Yukimura looks so determined. Finally, she raised her hand and said in defeat.

'Oh, that smile just now was too eye piercing' she thought inwardly with joy.

Though Yukimura would never realized this himself, he's actually a natural womanizer. That soft pleading gaze is one of his secret weapon. Not only women, even guys would fall in love with him.

"Bucho, you don't have to go as far as this" Niou said blatantly.

"A man should be responsible for what he caused" Yagyu Hiroshi remarked chivalrously as he closes the book he was reading a while ago.

"Yukimura, we'll leave her to your care" with that said, Sanada signaled the rest of the members to leave the infirmary.

* * *

"_Sakuno, I like you" _

"_Ugly people like you should just rot and die in darkness" _

"_Stop acting like he belongs to you only. He belongs to everyone" _

"_Ugly, disgusting, you've got the worst personality!!"_

"_Those girly long braids. It's an eyesore. I cut them off"_

"No…"

"Stop…" Sakuno whimpered; her knees curled up a little, two arms holding against her own body tightly, tears trickled down from the corner of her eyes

"This child…" Perhaps she's having a nightmare; he assumed. He placed his broad hand on hers as he whispered with assurance "Don't worry, everything will be fine…"

Her miserable façade smoothened and was replaced with a faint smile.

In the midst of darkness, a glimpse of light appeared before her. She sees a dark figure appeared before her.

"I'm here to heal your wound, my Princess"

The End

* * *

Translation: 

Musume – Daughter/Girl (In my story, it refers to girl)

Fuzoku – Affiliated (Rikkai Daigaku is an affiliated school (Fuzoku kou))

Sensei – Teacher/Master/Doctor

Sou – That way/Like that (Hehehe, the explanation is going to be long). If anyone is interested to know further; please message me; I'll be grateful to provide a full detail)

Bucho – Captain

* * *

AN: I didn't know what makes me used this title; but it directly comes into my mind while watching Gintama where the heroine Kagura-chan introduced a paranoid episode – Once upon a time a China Musume; you don't know the real Gintama. Phew…that was really something. 

I also dunno why, I voluntarily starts typing this short fiction; perhaps mi-chan needs something to stimulates this 'mi-chan' creativity. I'm totally beaten, as the other stories are still in 'Lost world' It's like a cube puzzle, I'm struggling to put it back on pace again.

With that said, I really appreciate for those who take up their precious time to read this fanfiction. Please leave me a review and let me know your thoughts and comments.

Special dedication: To all my friends; you know who you are right (Wink, wink)

Addition: Thanks to reader713 for pointing out my stupid mistake. I'll be more careful next time. Thank you!!!

Gokigenyo…

mi-chan yori.


	2. Rumbling Heart

**AN**: I'm sorry that I had accidentally deleted this chapter days ago. I was thinking of the correct some mistakes; then I clicked the wrong button; the first time then again the second time. Guess I'm a super noob. My apologies to all readers.

**Angel-chan: Mou; I'm so sorry for not checking the chapter properly. It seems like some text which I replied to you were missing. Perhaps it's because of the link not being recognised; that also affected the lines after it. Thanks for always being here to motivate me; I'm very very happy. Hahahha; I'm gonna make all of them bully Sakuno-chan (evil grin) Just kidding; she's too cute to be bullied. Thanks for the idea. I'll try my best to portray Sanada's role in this fic.**

**sasusaku4eva: Thank you for your review and yes; I've always dream of this couple for years. They are so cute together (Drool)**

**emily: Thank you for your review. I'll try my best to update.**

**To all: Fanart available; please visit my profile page to have a look. Hope that all of you would like it. **

**P/S: Please read and review. Domo**

Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume

Genre: Humor/Romance/Drama

Pairing: Yukimura/Sakuno

Scene: Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku

Song title: Rumbling Heart by Kuribayashi Minami

Note: For Japanese/Chinese, surname/family name/last name comes first.

Intro:

Ryuzaki Sakuno (1st Year): Our heroine who starts her senior high school life in Rikkai Dai Fuzoku. She is extremely shy, mellow and fragile; accident prone and with low self-esteem; sincerely believes that she carries bad luck wherever she goes and also believes that her bad luck is contagious. Despite of this she is a good girl with extreme sense of kindness.

Yukimura Seiichi (3rd Year): The hero; labeled as the most beautiful man, prince charming of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku. Have talents to become a womanizer provided that he's well trained. One of his special skills is the killer smile. He's the captain and also known as one of the three demons of Rikkai Dai tennis club.

Other cast: Sanada Genichirou (3rd Year), Yanagi Renji (3rd Year), Niou Masaharu (3rd Year), Yagyu Hiroshi (3rd Year), Marui Bunta (3rd Year), Kuwahara Jackal (3rd Year), Kirihara Akaya (2nd Year). I'm still not too sure how to portray these characters; but since it said paranoid; it couldn't be possible for me to make them like originality; I'm expecting OOCness.

Standard Disclaimer: Tenpuri belongs to Konomi-sensei.

Warning: Sakuno-centric. Please do not continue if you're not a big Sakuno fans. Could be super OOC, a little paranoid, readers are advised to stop reading if you find this disturbing.

"…" denotes speech

'…' denotes thoughts

"…" _denotes flashback_

**Bold denotes Song Lyrics**

* * *

Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume

* * *

Recap of Chp 1: 

Her miserable façade smoothened and was replaced with a faint smile.

In the midst of darkness, a glimpse of light appeared before her. She sees a dark figure appeared before her.

"I'm here to heal your wound, my Princess"

* * *

**Chapter 2: Rumbling Heart**

As day moved to evening, the light remained, shimmering as though it would never give way to night. After a full day routine training and strategizing; the Rikkai Dai regulars decided to go to meet up with their captain is now in the infirmary waiting for the girl who is yet to recover her consciousness.

By the time when Sakuno woke up it was almost evening. She wondered what had happened and why she would end up in the infirmary. She couldn't recall anything at this moment due to the throbbing pain in her head and she felt nauseating.

She assumed that this could be result of enduring with an empty stomach for the whole day.

The infirmary is rather quiet. All she could hear is the soft clanging sound of the window; the fluffing sound of the curtains that rises up in the air as the wind flows into the room.

Through a small gap of the curtain that was left opened; she could see someone sitting at the near corner next to the bed she is laying on.

'Someone is here?' she thought inwardly.

She's pretty sure that the one in waiting is definitely not here for her since this is her first day in Rikkai Dai; moreover; she didn't recall of knowing any friends who possess such beautiful violet colored locks.

"Ara; Yukimura-kun? I thought you were gone?" the nurse who had just returned from her routine patrolling around the school asked with surprise when she found that Yukimura is still staying in the infirmary.

'Yukimura??' the name sounds familiar to her; yet she couldn't recall of having any acquaintance with that person.

At this moment Sakuno felt that as if she is prying on other people's business; and it is not like what she wants.

She had thought of trying to behave normally; go out to greet those people and excuse herself before leaving the infirmary; however due to her highly introverted nature; it forbids her to act like normal school girl with a little socializing skills, hence all of these she could only envision it in her mind.

'Guess; I'll stay here and wait for a little while; I hope that they'll be leaving soon' she confirmed with a feeble finality.

"Well, I'm sure you'll be a very responsible adult in the future" the nurse complimented.

'I wondered what happened to the girl…' this is what came into Sakuno's mind. She wasn't aware that she was the only patient resting in the infirmary and that the girl whom Yukimura and the nurse mentioned was actually her 'I hope she's okay too…'

"It was me who caused the problem afterall" he continued modestly.

"I have the obligation to ensure that she is fine; and so that I can also apologize to her personally"

"As expected; you're a good man" she praised again.

'Indeed; it is hard find such responsible guy nowadays…' Sakuno agreed.

"Like what you assumed earlier, she's a new transfer student" the nurse said while going through the information sheet of the patient.

'So, she's just like me, newly transferred' she sympathize the girl. They were stuck in the same situation; entered into a new school, new environment and a new start.

"She was formerly a student from Seishun Gakkuen" she continued.

'We're from the same school too…' As soon as she realized that she had gone too far; prying on other people's business; she gave herself a knock in her head and scolded herself inwardly for being a busy body. But knowing that the new comer used to be from the same school; Sakuno's almost burst into tears, she's is also quite emotional at times.

"Her name is Ryuzaki Sakuno"

Her face suddenly changed hue when she realized that the person whom they were talking about could possibly be her.

"Ryuzaki??" Yukimura mused "Her surname sounds familiar"

Sakuno panicked. She had just found out that for all this time; she was the one whom they were talking about. She failed to recall any incident she got herself involved in. She cannot even give herself any explanation of how she ended up resting in the infirmary?

She must have got herself involve in some kind of implausible incident again.

"I wondered if she is really okay…" He asked with a little concern "…it seems like she's been sleeping for quite sometimes"

"I think she's fine. I checked on her reflexes a while ago and she seems fine, at least she did jerk when I tickled her" the nurse replied jokingly.

'So, that was the reason why I had dreamt that pocchie was licking my knees' she thought embarrassingly upon remembering her whimsical dreams.

"That's great; otherwise if anything happens to her; I would never get to forgive myself" he heaved a sigh at last.

While Yukimura feel at ease; Sakuno could not accept the fact he blamed himself for the mishap especially he's someone whom she knew only by name.

She had always believed that she was born under an ominous star, she is very accident prone, and troubles never stop haunting her.

She don't even know how he look like, she barely see his appearance behind the thick curtain.

She doesn't know what kind of person he is; but from his speech; she could felt the gentleness in his soft mellow voice.

Bracing her courage; she push opened the heavy curtain and this eventually surprised the two as they assumed that she was still sleeping.

Before Yukimura could speak; Sakuno is already standing in front of him. She grabbed his arms with both her trembling hands, her head dropped, her teary eyes fixed on the floor.

"I'm sorry!! I'm really sorry!! It was my fault that you were blaming yourself…" she murmured frantically at last.

For a moment Yukimura didn't know what to say. For all his life; he had never encounter situation like this.

He knew very well that she was injured by him and he was to be blamed. It really caught him by astonishment when she came up to him and apologized for something which he assumed that she wasn't well comprehended.

'I don't know how to handle her' he thought pathetically for the first time of his six years high school life. The intenseness is even greater than the time when he was being pushed into the operation theatre.

He had never been held like this before by any female students due to the fact that he is always under his teammate's protection from being attack by those passionate fangirls.

He wasn't able to see clearly her face as she had kept her head bow low at all times. Moreover; the long fringes seems to have cover almost half of her face; covering her eyes.

He turn and look at the school nurse hoping that she could do something about this but reality always seems to be more crucial than sanguinity.

Taking advantage of his preoccupation, Sakuno took the opportunity to study him.

He was taller than she expected; with broad shoulders; long legs with toned muscles. He has a set of violet little-tresses flip length wavy hair that looks almost ladylike.

**The distant rainbow we met**

**My memory of you will live on**

**For eternity**

He turned back to her suddenly and their eyes meet. He finally to see her; those beautiful round eyes that hide behind those thin and long fringes.

For several seconds they said nothing, but Yukimura regarded her steadily. She had tears in her eyes.

His hand moved up to dry the girl's teary eyes. Sakuno was very much astounded by his action. The touch of his hand on her face brought strange and exciting emotions into being suddenly and she was aware of a whole new range of sensations as she stood there close to him.

She got alarmed; frantically she pushed him away and before dashing out of the infirmary.

For a moment Yukimura stood fidgeted and don't know what to do until the nurse interrupted.

"Ah; Yukimura-kun; you've scared the girl away" she remarked teasingly.

"I did?" he blinked and began to muse over what happened a moment ago. Perhaps he shouldn't have consoled the girl and when he thought of it again he couldn't help but wondered why had he acted so hastily?

'Sympathy' he decided feebly.

"Aren't you going to chase after her?" she interrupted him for the second time.

"Do you think I should?" he asked in that confused voice.

"Of course" she chuckled at the perplexing look on his face before she answered him "It was you who made her run away afterall"

"But; isn't this girl a little unusual? She's the first girl who ran away from you, Yukimura-kun?" she continued her teasing mercilessly.

"True enough" he nodded "she's really different from those ferocious fangirls who tried to eat me alive" thinking of all those dreadful experience he had been through; he couldn't help but shiver with fear.

'She is different' he thought again before attempting to chase after Sakuno.

Sakuno couldn't calm herself down. The moment when their eyes met she thought that her heart had almost jumped out from her mouth. She had never seen such a beautiful man before. He has a face of a flower, an androgynous type.

Looking at those beautiful face increases her blood pressure.

**The soft wind holds**

**Your memory my heart becomes painful**

**On top of the hill by myself**

**The seasons are waiving**

**Beyond the blue skies**

**What can I see?**

The school has become so quiet that she could only hear her own footsteps.

Finally she stopped and panted; it's been like decades since she had been running in such a pace.

She understands that it is very impolite to push people away; especially the one who went through troubles; helping her out, taking care for her. She was brought up by her parents with courtesy and grace.

She could no longer recall since when she starts to rot. It's affecting her all over.

"_Ugly people like you should just rot and die in darkness" _

"_Ugly, disgusting, you've got the worst personality!!"_

"_Those girly long braids. It's an eyesore. I cut them off"_

"No…" she quivered.

**I want courage**

**And pray for silence**

**I can't go back anymore**

**To your arms wrapped around me**

**The gentle days**

**The hazy summer memories remain**

**The tiny fireworks disappear**

**Even now**

"I'll be alright…I'll be…fine…" she convinced herself; with both her hands tightened around her trembling body.

"Hey…" the familiar voice called from behind.

She didn't expect that he'll pursue after her. Without saying a word; Sakuno run away from him for the second time.

'Please…please don't come near me' she prayed.

Yukimura blinked with curiosity. Was he really that scary that she had to run away?

**The water sprays the light pours**

**It looks like crystal! Look!**

**It shines**

They chased after each other. It seems like the girl is unexpectedly a sprinter, a rather fast one; he suggested.

'What will others think when they sees me like this?' he thought again; with his face blushing lightly.

'_Whahahaha, buchou; can't even catch up with a girl?!' _

'_Yukimura; I didn't know that you're so weak' _

Sakuno is getting frantic. It seems like that guy is not going to give up with the chase. He's still pursuing her.

'I must have enraged him; for being ungrateful for what he had done!!' she thought frantically while running.

So occupied by the fear of getting caught by her pursuer; Sakuno didn't notice that she had already reached the stairway. When she realized that it was too late. She could no longer stop.

"Oh no…" it seems like her body was thrown into the midair, her long hair flows freely from behind.

She'd expect a hard fall in a while. She shut her eyes tight. To her surprise she felt like as if she's being cushioned when she landed face flat.

"Are…are you alright?" a voice murmured softly at the side of her ear.

**Our fingertips touch**

**That degree of uneasiness**

**For just a little more**

**Hold me like this**

Her eyes widen. Lying beneath her is the person who chased after her. She's now lying on top of him, his arms securing her waist, protecting her from getting injured.

For the second times; he saved her.

"Are you alright?" he asked again.

"I'm fine" she replied feebly.

**Even the innocent smile**

**I am taken by it**

"Good; but I don't think I am…" he let out a soft chuckle.

At this moment Sakuno thought; despite she clearly sees his expression for being in pain due to the fall; he is still smiling at her.

"Well…would you mind of getting off me now; I can't breathe steadily in such position…" he continued with his voice becomes so soft beneath those heavy breathe.

"AH?! I'm SORRY!!!" Just when she was about to get off from him; a group of people exclaimed loudly from behind.

"BUCHOU!!!!"

Both of them turn around to face those people.

"Minna?!" Yukimura had not expected that his teammates to witness him in such beaten state and worst; being caught in such an awkward. To his comprehension; the guys would even act irrationally whenever they see any girl that stays near him.

Just when the Rikkai Dai players were about to approach their captain to help him up, another stern voice called out to stop them for moving forward.

"Stop, stop, stop, stop it right there!!!" a man at his late fifties ordered while dashing towards the team, overtook them and he spread open his arms to prevent the group from taking a further step towards the couple.

"Vice Chairman?!" All of them were taken aback upon registering the person who stops them.

"What are you guys trying to do; with that threatening expressions?!" the man reprimanded.

"Kuraki oji-chan?!" Sakuno instantly recognize the elderly man who stood and sheltered her from the group of blood boiling young players.

With that allowance of time; she immediately gets off from Yukimura. She noticed that Yukimura's face is getting paler. He's been clutching on one of his leg for sometimes.

**I can't return anymore**

**Hesitating to be hurt**

**Those young days**

**Inside my heart, the secret is raised**

**The tiny memory disappears**

**Even now**

'Could it be…a fracture?!' Sakuno thought fearfully.

'_This happened because of you!! You're good for nothing but a troublemaker'_

"Sakuno-oujosama" the man instantly turns around to check if she's alright.

"Oujo-sama?" it seems like the players had cooled off due to the sudden twist of events. The vice chairman is treating the girl with utmost courtesy.

They didn't know what makes them settle this off without giving this girl a stern warning or making her feeling sorry for a year or two for what she had done to their captain. Perhaps by looking at the situation now; they couldn't get themselves to threaten her further.

**Someday**

**Everything will**

**Become gentle**

"Please…please help him…" her expression shows her concern over the young man lying next to her.

"Please…please…" her tears makes her looks so fragile; as if even by the slightest touch she would fall apart.

**That day I saw the seven-colored dream**

**The distant rainbow we met**

**My memory of you will live on**

**For eternity**

"I'll be okay…please don't cry anymore…" despite of the pain he endured; his trembling hand moved over to stroke her teary face with gentleness.

**TBC**

* * *

A/N: Yeah; finally!!! I've managed to complete chapter two. I'm so sorry for keeping the story hanging there too. 

As usual, please forgive my short comings, bad writing style and grammar mistakes.

Oh, I've not be feeling well lately. It looks like the seasons of colds and flu is in the air; I've become one of the victims (Sigh). I've got terrible sinus and sore throat too.

With that said; I hope everyone is in good health; don't be like mi-chan (crying a lake of tears)

I must also apologize for being able to reply your reviews for this story personally. Really, that gives me lots of encouragement. Thank you for all the comments. I'm very happy to read them; especially all the motivation that ask me to update my story, cute & lovely comments.

Ah I have someone whom I have to reply their review here since they did not sign into Fanfiction dot Net

Juliana - Thanks for your review. The reasons why Sakuno had transferred to Rikkai Dai will be revealed in the next chapter. And most probably the fangirls are the one who cause her to be in pain. That's classical Sakuno-centric story. (Giggles)

AuroraRose – Thank you!! I'm glad that you'd find my story interesting. I'm also craving for more reviews.

Finally, I would also like to take this opportunity to say thanks for those who spend their time reading this story.

Hope you all would enjoy this.

Dewa gokigenyo,

mi-chan yori-


	3. Her decision

* * *

AN: My dearest friends and readers. First, Mi-chan would like to apologize for the very slow progression. I guess that's what they call loss of inspiration? Well, perhaps I need to hibernate or perhaps do meditation to get my inspiration back. I finally decided that by hook or by crook, I must finish this. I reread the story and changed many parts which I think it would be nice. I even become a hikikomori in order to finish up this so that I can update my story soon. I must thank everyone for your encouragement and patience. Without your support, mi-chan is nothing.

Again; I must sincerely apologize for keeping this story pending for so long. I also hope that I will somehow stir up your will to continue to read this story. All dedications go to all my friends and reviewers for encouraging me, and to all Sakuno's fan.

**P/S: Please read and review. Domo**

Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume

Genre: Humor/Romance/Drama

Pairing: Yukimura/Sakuno

Scene: Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku

Note: For Japanese/Chinese, surname/family name/last name comes first.

Intro:

Ryuzaki Sakuno (1st Year): Our female protagonist who starts her senior high school life in Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Yukimura Seiichi (3rd Year): Our male protagonist; labeled as the most beautiful man, prince charming of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

**Sanada Genichirou (3rd Year): Vice captain of Rikkai Dai Tennis Club. He's extremely protective over their captain, Yukimura; especially over fangirls who intend to attack him. Consider the second best player after Yukimura; one of the three demons, the Emperor. Possess a deadly glare that could instantly freeze people; mostly use for killing fangirls who attacked Yukimura. **

Other Cast: Yanagi Renji (3rd Year), Niou Masaharu (3rd Year), Yagyu Hiroshi (3rd Year), Marui Bunta (3rd Year), Kuwahara Jackal (3rd Year), Kirihara Akaya (2nd Year). I'm still not too sure how to portray these characters; but since it said paranoid; it couldn't be possible for me to make them like originality; I'm expecting OOCness.

Standard Disclaimer: Tenpuri belongs to Konomi-sensei.

Warning: Sakuno-centric. Please do not continue if you're not a big Sakuno fans. Could be super OOC, a little paranoid, readers are advised to stop reading if you find this disturbing. Contain spoiler of the final chapter of Tenipuri.

"…" denotes speech

'…' denotes thoughts

"…" _denotes flashback_

"…" _denotes _

* * *

Recap of Chapter 2:

"Please…please…" her tears makes her looks so fragile; as if even by the slightest touch she would fall apart.

"I'll be okay…please don't cry anymore…" despite of the pain he endured; his trembling hand moved over to stroke her teary face with gentleness.

**

* * *

**

Chapter 3:

"Hey you; hold this…" Kirihara Akaya commanded frostily before tossing his backpack to the girl.

Sakuno glanced at the raven haired young man though her lashes. She felt Kirihara had been acting high and mighty towards her eversince they met; yet as diffident as she is; she dare not to riposte.

"Ha…hai…" she stammered and abided obediently but inwardly she almost got drown by her pitiful tears 'Why did it turn out this way…'

"How are you doing, Ryuzaki-san?" a soft mellow voice asked from behind.

Sakuno turn around to face that person and with a shy smile as she replied "I'm fine; Yukimura-senpai"

**

* * *

**

Three days ago:

Sanada Genichirou came with his group to the lounge attached to the Emergency Ward.

"Sanada-san…" she called, jittery with anxiety.

The Rikkai Dai Fuzoku vice captain ignored her as he continued to pace towards the entrance of that particular ward.

"I'll stay until Yukimura comes out" he confirmed "The rest of you can go back home first"

"No, we'll stay too" Yanagi affirmed and that speaks for the rest of the team members.

Yagyu Hiroshi, being renowned for his chivalrous manner approached the girl instead. "You are the girl whom our captain rescued earlier?"

"Ha…hai…" she replied feebly, her head dropped lower than usual.

"What's your name?" he asked politely. Though he did heard of how their vice chairman addressed her; however it would be nice to start off with a conversation.

There was a moment of silence. The humming fluorescent lights cast a dead glow which drained the color of all objects, reducing everything to an identical burgeon white.

"I'm Ryuzaki, Ryuzaki Sakuno…" The words drifted from her mouth, light as air, she wasn't sure if she had spoken them until she saw Yagyu nodded his head as a sign of acknowledgment.

"Ryuzaki Sakuno?? Sounds familiar…" Yanagi mused audibly.

"Yeah; I remember her…" The team's junior ace, Kirihara Akaya came forth and stood next to his senior upon confirming her identity. "She's the grand daughter of Ryuzaki-sensei"

Based on what Kirihara claimed earlier; both Sanada and Yanagi turn around to study the girl.

'What had happened to her' the two players thought in unison.

Though they are not very sure of how Ryuzaki Sakuno looks like as it's been few years back since they met; but their memories of her are quite different from this one. They assumed that she's supposed to be lovely and decent.

Of course they no way they would use 'lovely' or 'decent' to describe the girls in their school as they are constantly being force into situation where their captain is being stalk, surrounded by bunch of noisy fangirls and had left them a dreadful impression.

"So you guys know her?" Bunta quickly spit out his half chewed bubble gum before instigating more from the three teammates.

"Well; not to say that we know…" Yanagi replied hesitantly.

"She was one of the volunteers during the America-Japan Exchange Game and she's from Seigaku" Kirihara continued to enlighten others who were not chosen to participate in the said program.

"Seigaku??" even it is the name of their rival; it seems too sensitive for their ears.

Right now the girl who stood before them has nothing to be compared to those features, especially her long fringes that covered almost half of her face; they couldn't tell if she's the same person.

"What are you doing here in Kanagawa?" Kirihara asked with Niou who stood beside him; staring down at her coldly.

There was no response. She could not stop shivering. The cold she felt was not just of the air condition and the shady lounge, it was heart-deep.

Before Kirihara could instigate further; the stainless steel doors which led to the emergency room swung open and a nurse appeared to be pushing a wheelchair with their captain, one of his legs was bounded with a sling and thick bandages.

"Yukimura/Buchou?!"

Yukimura arched a brow upon seeing his teammates gathering at the lounge "Why are you guys still here?"

"Yukimura/Buchou?!" Everyone dashed over to greet the team's captain except one person; Niou Masaharu.

"Yu…Yukimura-san…" before she could even take a step from where she stood; Niou impeded her.

"We're not done with the little chit chat we had just now…" he said "…what is your intention?"

Sakuno could felt the threatening aura around Niou; she moved away from him.

"Niou…" The captain called.

The violet haired young man knew instantly that the prankster is trying to threaten the girl. In the past he had made numerous fangirls retreated with regret when they tried to hit on his teammates. He would surely make them cry thousand years worth of tears. It is always Yukimura who stopped him from doing all these harassment to the opposite gender.

He was instantly taken aback upon noticing the warning from his captain. Though he felt a little upset over it but he dare not to go against the order.

For long; all the players of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku had established an utmost respect towards Yukimura; the young man who lead the team to become the National Champion for years before losing to Seigaku.

"Fine…" with that said; he walked away from Sakuno.

"Ryuzaki-san…"

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" he asked politely.

"Buchou?! How could you still show your concern towards this girl..." unable to stand the way of how his captain had treated the girl so kindly despite the fact that his injury was partly caused by her; Kirihara burst out in rage "…because of her; you're now sitting on a wheelchair"

Sakuno's eyes widen upon hearing what Kirihara said and she felt like her guilt is eating her up.

"I'm…I'm so sorry…" she apologized, her head drop to hide her teary eyes, her two hands rolled into a fist and clenches tightly across her chest when she becomes more and more remorseful of all the trouble she had caused him.

If Yukimura had not shot a deadly glare at him; Kirihara would have go further to reprove her.

"This is just some minor injuries…" he ensured with a warm smile before pushing his wheelchair to move closer to the girl "…the doctor must have somehow made it look serious"

"As expected from our captain, the 'Child of God'…" Yagyu complimented "…what genial conduct you have towards opposite genders"

While Yagyu and Jackal went over to comfort the poor girl who grovels for forgiveness; Kirihara stomp off to stand at far corner to cool off his hot-headedness.

It did surprised most of his teammates upon seeing how their captain defended the girl, yet, knowing him for years; they accepted the situation, as his gentleness is one of his many qualities. It also seems like his demonic attitude would only be on activation mode when he plays tennis.

"Shall we get going?" Yukimura suggested "I felt nauseating for staying here too long; brings back the unpleasant memories"

"Right…but let me go and settle off the discharge registration first" Sanada added.

"There's no need for that…" a voice interrupted so suddenly that it did startled most of them who did not took notice the man's presence "…I had already done the needed"

"Kuraki Vice Chairman…"

"Kuraki-jichan…" As soon as she sees the familiar façade; she quickly dashes towards him and hide herself from the team.

"Everything is alright now; Oujo-sama" he assured her with a gentle pat on her head.

"What do you mean by '**everything is alright'**?" Marui said boldly while the others except Yukimura; glared at the vice chairman with detest. "Obviously our captain is now sitting on a wheelchair; with one of his legs wrapped with bandages and sling"

That utter remarks of Marui had somehow condemn the elder man from talking further.

There was a moment of silence before a baritone voice of another person came in and intervene the silent scene.

"I sincerely express my regret for what happened to Yukimura-kun" The man speaks as he revealed himself from the dark corner of the room that was not far away from group.

"Director…" Kuroki called out for the man who gave him a good freak.

The entrance of the director of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku, Minamino Hiromasa had somehow startled the group.

"Grandpa…" seeing the director; Sakuno's grandfather; makes her feel at ease. It seems like she was able to breathe again; the earlier situation was awkward; it makes her feel uncomfortable, it suffocated her for as long as she could remember.

"Grandpa??" everyone stared at the girl with surprise to know that the girl whom their captain saved happened to be someone related to the director.

"Did I just hear her calling that old man 'Gramps'?" Marui mused audibly.

"She wouldn't be calling him 'Darling', duh" Niou replied nonchalantly. This had given the trickster another good reason for him to dislike her; he despises weaklings and moreover now that he knows that she's related to the director.

"Yukimura-kun; I heard everything from Kuroki-san and I have to say that I really appreciate you for saving my granddaughter from being injured," his mellow façade never loose a bit of those gaily smile he puts as he continued.

"So, is there anything this old man can do for you as a token of my appreciation?"

"You said 'anything'?" Marui prompted

"Yes, but depends on whether what you ask is within my capability" he laughed gaily as he reply.

"I guess you do have to authority to order the school canteen to change all their menus to cakes and pastries, right??" he winked at the director.

"Of…" just when the gaily old man was about to reply Marui, he fidgeted after seeing the half-Brazilian, Jackal, who sinisterly moved over and attacked his partner with a strong knocking on the back of his head, giving him castigation for bringing shame to the team.

"We're sorry…" Sanada came forth to bow before the director and politely apologize on Marui's behalf "…we're in no position of asking for anything from you, Mr. Director"

"Sanada…" Yukimura is very please of what Sanada said earlier.

As always, the great Emperor has always tried his best to protect and uphold the integrity of the team.

"However…"

Sakuno's grandfather waited patiently for Sanada to continue.

"Since our captain was the one who saved her, we should at least allow him to express this clearly to you, Mr. Director" with that said, he moved aside and let Yukimura to meet the chairman and to allow him to continue the rest of the conversation.

Before Yukimura speaks, he catches a glimpse of the little lady who had been hiding herself for quite sometimes. She has been quietly listening to their conversation.

Seeing her face again makes him recalled of what he saw and heard when they first met.

She is vulnerable, her teary eyes and those trembling voices as she was sleep talking tells everything.

He also felt that they are very much alike. She's just like a mirror image of the past him who almost had given up on everything.

If not for his family and his teammates who constantly supported him, he wouldn't have been here right now.

Sakuno could also felt that those pairs of soft violet eyes that slid over her in a slow, compelling scrutiny that was eloquent and it's disturbing. She couldn't help it but to deliberately hide from it.

"Indeed Sanada did convey my message well…" he said in a small clear voice that carried a hint of acquiescence as he continues further "…there's no need for you to reward me"

With that said the Rikkai Dai's player excuse themselves and proceed to leave the hospital building.

The director, chairman Kuroki and Sakuno left right after the group. Just when Sakuno is about to get into the car, she remembered that she is supposed to thank Yukimura for saving her. Without hesitating, the decent girl turned back to pursue after the group, leaving the two elderly behind dumbfounded.

* * *

While walking, the players decided to discuss on how to share their captain's daily chores.

The younger ace, Kirihara protested because he was given more chores than the others.

"Why do I have to prepare breakfast for all the players?!" he asked.

"That's because Akaya is a good chef" Bunta commented

"I'm not happy even if you complimented me, Marui-senpai"

"Aw…my cute little kohai is wailing like a baby" the volley specialist seems to enjoy teasing his junior.

"I'm not wailing!!" he sulked. "It is just that all of us are so busy with trainings for the upcoming semi-final and now…"

"Hey, stop wailing…" Niou muttered moodily as he tosses a five hundred yen to Kirihara "…go and get yourself an ice cream"

"I don't need one!!" It seems like the group never gets tired of teasing the younger player.

"There, don't be shy…just go and grab a bit" Jackal commented as he moved over to ruffle Kirihara's hair playfully.

"Here are some books on how to handle stress" recommended Yagyu as he tossed his backpack loaded with books to Kirihara.

"I don't need this and why are there so many books?!"

"I was planning to lend the books to Yukimura just in case he has to admit for observation. It's troublesome to bring so many books while walking you know?"

"Then don't just simply dump it to me, Yagyu-senpai!!"

"There, stop wailing like a baby…"

"Cheh!!" After hearing that same phrase over and over again, Kirihara knew that it would not come to an end if he continues to retaliate.

While the Rikkai players were enjoying their time together, Sakuno finally caught up with them and although she's still quite far away from the group, Sanada took notice of her.

He stops pushing the wheelchair and turns around to confront her.

"What do you want?" he asked coldly and Sakuno freaked as she is not expecting that the emperor would talk to her.

"Sakuno-san?" Yukimura fluttered his eyes upon seeing the girl "Why are you still here? Aren't you supposed to be going back with the director and chairman?"

"I…I…" As soon as his eyes met hers; she quickly looked away. She couldn't stand those beautiful stares of his for too long; it'll make her heartbeat race feverishly.

"What's her problem?" Kirihara raised his brow. It pissed him further upon seeing how she acted.

"Shy?" Yanagi suggested bafflingly.

It was rather ridiculous for the guys to stand still for almost five minutes just to wait for the girl to speak.

"If there's nothing you want, would you please excuse us?" Just when Sanada is about to leave; the diffident girl shook her head frantically as she pleaded them to stay.

"Better hurry up, we do not wish to waste our time further" he said again.

"Tha…thank you…" she muttered beneath her breathe.

"Huh?"

"Yukimura-san…" she finally braced her courage to speak louder than her usual feeble voice "…thank you…for saving me"

"You're most welcome" Yukimura smiled when the girl thank him.

'He heard me' she thought happily. The corners of her mouth curled upward as she smiled with delight.

Based on her expression now; the girl seems to have relaxed a little.

"Hey, if you're done, please stop following us" Although Kirihara tried to speaks to her normally however it seems like he's still unable to control his rage and that really did freak the poor girl out, one word one thrill.

"Oi Akaya, you're being impolite again" Niou shook his head as he speaks. Just when everyone though that he might have changed his attitude towards the girl; the trickster went over and whispered softly to her.

"Get out of my sight, or else…" he smirk grimly at her, his expression is warning her to leave them alone.

The impact of Niou's expression is so great and upon hearing it, Sakuno was stood fidgeted.

"Hey guys, be more rational, okay?" Upon seeing how she reacted, Jackal asked with a loud sigh. He really dislikes the way his teammates picked on this poor girl. "Stop freaking her out"

"I don't understand…" Yagyu mused "…why are the two of you keeps on bullying her and why are the two of you fussing over a little girl like her? Don't you think that you'll leave bad impression to our new junior, Niou, Akaya?"

"Yagyu is right" Yukimura said seriously "Rikkai Dai's tennis club members do not treat people with ill-manner"

"But Buchou, she's from Seigaku!!" Kirihara exclaimed "Moreover, because of her, you're now injured. We have to take up extra responsibility to take care of the team"

For years, the Rikkai Dai Fuzoku Tennis Club is famous for their unbeatable records despite of the facts that the team is not being trained under any professional coach. All these time, the captain, Yukimura, Sanada and Yanagi are the one who took the responsibility to coach and lead the team.

And most of the credit goes to Yukimura, the key person who contributes all his might to train up his teams. And right now, this person is badly injured.

It's just like what had happened to him years ago. To make the situation worst, the team had identified the fact that the girl whom their captain saved happened to be from Seigaku, the team that broke the team's ambition of maintaining the unbeatable record, the rivalry team had broken their dream.

It took them several months to regain their confidence and hope. Right now the National Tournament is approaching, the team is training hard. Yukimura is putting up extra efforts to train the players and he's determined to reclaim the title, the honor from their rival, Seigaku.

"We're now going through these imperative periods and yet…" Kirihara lowered his head to hide his anger that get on his head whenever he was reminded of the critical situation they're in at this moment.

"Akaya, you're thinking too much" Yanagi went over to give the junior an encouraging pat on his shoulder as he assured him "We can overcome this"

"What about those extra chores that we are about to take up?" the junior debated.

"Akaya, I will still be doing some part of the management. I will ensure that our progress will be unaffected, I won't be a burden to our team"

"Buchou" That rather firm affirmation had startled the team. They knew that he's a man who keeps his words.

"Yukimura, the doctor said that you should need more rest" Sanada warned.

"I'm the person who knows my body the best, Genichirou" he retaliated with an equal sternness as the emperor.

At this moment Sakuno could tell that Yukimura is considered the most important key person of the team. And yet, it was because of her, the team is now in critical situation.

Although Sakuno might be clumsy but she's not a fool for not realizing that there are people among the team who's dislike her. However that does not stop her of wanting to take up the responsibility of amending the mistake.

Bracing all her courage, she approaches Sanada.

"Sanada-san..." she managed to call out his name without getting nervous. And with that she instantly earned a frosty dead glare from the vice captain.

"What?" he asked unenthusiastically.

"Please let me…help…" she paused when she realized that she had used the wrong word and had earned more glares from the other two people namely Niou and Akaya.

"I…I mean, please let me repent myself from causing all the troubles. Please allow me be useful" as soon as she finished her declaration, she bowed low before the team.

They all looked at the girl. Although she might be shy and she looks weak; but at this moment she had shown to them her sincerity and determination.

"Genichirou, what do you think?" Yukimura asked.

"I'll leave it to your decision" he replied as a matter of factly.

'Am I not being accepted' she thought wearily at first but it's too soon for her to give up.

"Please accept me" she pleaded again.

"Sakuno-san, let's do our best" with that said the captain shook the girl's hand as to show his acceptance of her.

"Yukimura-san…" touched by the captain's benevolence, Sakuno couldn't help but shed her happy tears as she thanked him in a nonstop mode.

It's been three days since Sakuno become part of the team and is doing her best to learn from Yukimura in helping out the club. Among the group, almost half numbers of the team had treated Sakuno coldly after know that she's formally from Seigaku. Aside from that she also gained the hatred of many female fangirls who worshipped Yukimura.

This is just the beginning of her dreadful school life in Rikkai Dai.

"Doushiyo??"

TBC

* * *

A/N: Phew At last I've finally completed this chapter. I guess the most difficult part is to get Sakuno to be involved with the Rikkai team. I think for the time being Sakuno will have to suffer from Sanada, Niou and Kirihara's torments. This also means that the characters might be super OOC. And my apology for all the grammar mistakes.

Once again thanks for reading and please review.

Ja mata ne,

mi-chan yori


	4. More Troubles

**AN**: Konnichi ha, minna-san. Mi-chan hope everyone is doing fine. The weather is getting cold, so please take care ne I'm so happy that I finally fixed some errors in this story. Still mi-chan is not always good in grammar so please forgive me if some lines sounds silly.

I hope you all would enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoy writing. And as alway, please review, onegaishimasu

Domo.

* * *

Recap of previous chapter:

It's been three days since Sakuno become part of the team and is doing her best to learn from Yukimura in helping out the club

It's been three days since Sakuno become part of the team and is doing her best to learn from Yukimura in helping out the club. Among the group, almost half numbers of the team had treated Sakuno coldly after know that she's formally from Seigaku. Aside from that she also gained the hatred of many female fangirls who worshipped Yukimura.

This is just the beginning of her dreadful school life in Rikkai Dai.

"Doushiyo??"

* * *

**Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume**

Genre: Humor/Romance/Drama

Pairing: Yukimura/Sakuno

Scene: Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku

Note: For Japanese/Chinese, surname/family name/last name comes first.

Cast Introduction:

Ryuzaki Sakuno (1st Year): Our female protagonist who starts her senior high school life in Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Yukimura Seiichi (3rd Year): Our male protagonist; labeled as the most beautiful man, prince charming of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Sanada Genichirou (3rd Year): Vice captain of Rikkai Dai Tennis Club. Consider the second best player after Yukimura; one of the three demons, the Emperor.

**Yanagi Renji (3rd Year): One of the three demons. Like Seigaku's Inui Sadaharu he is a data specialist. He's quiet and soft spoken. Considered as the most mysterious player with the ability of walking properly with a pair of half (?) closed eyes which aside from Seigaku's Fuji Syuusuke; not many people are capable of doing so. He has acid sense of humor and he's more approachable than Sanada. **

Other Cast: Niou Masaharu (3rd Year), Yagyu Hiroshi (3rd Year), Marui Bunta (3rd Year), Kuwahara Jackal (3rd Year), Kirihara Akaya (2nd Year). I'm still not too sure how to portray these characters; but since it said paranoid; it couldn't be possible for me to make them like originality; I'm expecting OOCness.

Standard Disclaimer: Tenpuri belongs to Konomi-sensei.

Warning: Sakuno-centric. Please do not continue if you're not a big Sakuno fans. Could be super OOC, a little paranoid, readers are advised to stop reading if you find this disturbing. Contain spoiler of the final chapter of Tenipuri.

"…" denotes speech

'…' denotes thoughts

"…" _denotes flashback_

**Bold denotes song lyrics**

**

* * *

**

Chp 4: More Troubles

* * *

It's been a week since Sakuno joined Rikkai Dai's tennis club. The captain, Yukimura Seiichi is recovering steadily and now he could be seen moving around with a crutch.

Everyday she's hearing protestation from the vice chairman, some team members and Yukimura's fans.

Despite of being treated coldly by most members, Sakuno continues to serve the team with diligence.

She knew that among this protesting people, there are a few of them who supported her, the head of the team; Yukimura Seiichi happened to be one of them.

Though the vice captain, Sanada Genichirou chooses to be rational, his aloof and serious personality had somehow mislead his followers to believe that he too hold a certain level of grudges towards the girl.

With his natural sullen attitude which can be equally compared to Seigaku's captain, Tezuka Kunimitsu; Sanada refuses to stand out for the girl despite of being asked to do so by Yukimura.

"Genichirou, shouldn't you do something about this?" The violet hair man asked as the two of them look out from the widow of their club house. The two demons are observing Sakuno from there as she was the only one who was left in the training ground, clearing up all the mess.

"Yukimura…" it a rare sight of the emperor to furrow his pair of thick dark brows before he speaks "….as you are fully aware that a numbers of players are still protesting over the fact that this girl is here because she's responsible for your injuries. Such intensity; I don't think that now is the right time for me to tell them to stop picking up on her"

"Sanada…" Sanada eyes widen when Yukimura addressed him using his surname instead "…it's not that I don't trust your judgment; I've always did. But to someone like her; who hasn't even fully adapt to a new environment and have to go through such treatment, isn't this a little too cruel?"

"Ah…" while looking at the girl once again; Sanada replied Yukimura "…isn't it a little too cruel for us too who joined this tennis club despite of the opposition from the school"

"This and that are different issues" though Yukimura is beginning to feel annoyed by Sanada's unreasonable explanations but he chooses to remain calm and unruffled.

"There's no difference for those people who holds grudges on her; the one who caused your injuries and she who is related to the school's director"

"There is a difference. I do believe that this girl came here not because she wanted to" Yukimura affirmed. The image of their first meeting projected his mind once again.

"_I'm sorry!! I'm really sorry!! It was my fault that you were blaming yourself…"_

'Her eyes'

"_Hey…"_

"_Are…are you alright?"_

"_I'm fine"_

"_Please…please help him…"_

"_Please…please…"_

'Her tears'

"_No…"_

"_Stop…"_

'Her fear'

The emperor was rather fascinated when he caught the renowned Child of God in deep thoughts while watching over the girl.

There were times that Sanada felt that Yukimura is giving the girl some special treatment.

'Could it be affection' the emperor mused however this thought were immediately condemned. What he witnessed from Yukimura's expression is nothing connected to it.

'Must be compassions' he confirmed.

The quiet evening doesn't last too long when Marui Bunta and Niou Masaharu entered the club house along with the others.

"Oya?? The two of you are still here??" the third year volley specialist asked indistinctively as he still has a piece of gum in his mouth.

Curious by the stance of the two demons; Niou asked "What are the two of you staring at?"

"The target" Yagyu Hiroshi replied "And that refers to the little kitten which our Buchou just took in weeks ago"

And since among the group; Jackal and Hiroshi are the only person who have no problem with the girl; Yukimura had entrusted the monitoring work to them. And the target is none other than Ryuzaki Sakuno.

"Hiroshi; how is she do…" before Yukimura could even finish what he wants to say, the gentleman interjected.

"Perfect!" This time the gentleman had done something that is so ungracious; he cut off somebody's words and that had shock everyone!!

With that said Yanagi came forth to read out the data he had collected on Sakuno for the past weeks.

"She broke thirty-nine baskets; ten which she happened to stumble on it; dirtied more than five hundred balls"

"Gosh, I did see her doing all the stunts but I never count the number of times she repeated them" Bunta added nonchalantly.

"Nineteenth times, she assigned wrong court numbers to players. Two hundred and twenty eight times she had a near miss of being hit by tennis balls."

"She perfectly a Ms. Disaster" Kirihara added at last.

"I guess this month's club budget is going to be a deficit" Yanagi added sourly while going through the budgetary book of their club.

"It's my fault that I didn't really take care of her" Jackal claimed resentfully.

"Please don't say that. I must apologize for putting all of you through all the troubles"

"Buchou…" upon seeing that their captain apologized, the team quieted down.

"I never expect that my decision of accepting the girl would cause so many troubles" the captain conceded solemnly.

"Yukimura…" Knowing Yukimura for years; Sanada has always acknowledge his ability of judging people by just glancing at them. For once he never doubted his decision. But this time…

"There must be something that stalled the girl from functioning normally" at least the emperor tried to cheer his best friend up.

"Indeed I've realized something which I assumed that it might be the cause of her wobbliness" Yanagi added.

"Really??" Marui asked out of curiosity. He never knew that Yanagi would study his target so thoroughly.

"Her gaze is always fix on the ground with her head bowing lower than normal level whenever she talks to anyone"

Right after Yanagi said those words, the group began to visualize the girl in their head.

"As expected from our professor, Renji, you're really good!! You even noticed something so trivial!!" the cheerful player praised.

"Bunta, isn't that a courtesy when you're talking to someone; you're supposed to look into their eyes?" Yanagi raised a brow "And that's what I did, but something has been very annoying that she wasn't even looking at me while we chatted"

"You did look into her eyes? How?" Marui asked teasingly and despite of knowing that it's Yanagi's limit of being patience, he continued to mock the data specialist mercilessly.

"I guess I'm left with no choice but to do something to shut you up. How about trying out my friend's new recipe; Inui's deluxe hyper concentrated nutrition mix vege and herb tea?" Yanagi threatened.

"I…I'll pass!!"

"Now that you mentioned this; I also noticed the same" Jackal added quickly in order to divert the conversation between Yanagi and Marui. This is also his way of saving his partner's sorry ass.

"I realized that the long fringes of her front hair have been covering half of her face" Hiroshi added shortly "I think this could also be the reason why she is so accident prone"

'So it is her hair that causes all the troubles' both Niou and Akaya noted mentally. It seems like the trickster and his junior are having the same thoughts in mind.

They stared at each other for a moment. There's no words that needs to be said. At this moment they have come to a mutual understanding. They gave each other a last gesture before sneaking away from the group.

"I also realized that she wouldn't directly talk to me like other girls usually did" Yagyu mused.

"Shy…" the group nodded in unison.

"Indeed she's an extremely shy girl" Yukimura agreed feebly. At first he thought that he's the only one who received such treatment from the girl. It was just recently that he realized that Sakuno seems to have treated the whole male nation as a group of aliens.

He doesn't know why that there's a sudden glimpse of happiness that grows within him upon learning the truth. It makes him wants to smile and that he did inadvertently.

At this moment it was by luck that Sanada happened to be the only one among the group that noticed his unusual expression. Immediately he went closer to Yukimura and shields him from the group.

"Yukimura…" he whispered "…your face slipped"

"Oh…" he gave a rigid nod before turning away from the group to fix his face.

Although he could quickly fixed his expression however the embarrassment is too much to bear and before the Child of God could completely recollect his tranquility, a loud scream could be heard coming from the training ground.

The players identified and confirmed that the screaming lady is their temporary club manager, Ryuzaki Sakuno and now they are even suspecting that their two missing teammates could be the ones who are behind these.

"Let's go and find out what's going on" Yukimura suggested.

* * *

"WAIT!! I TOLD YOU NOT TO RUN!!"

The girl seemed to be running frantically around the training ground with two pursuers namely Niou Masaharu and Kirihara Akaya chasing after her.

The trickster is seen hold a pair of scissor while his partner in crime, Kirihara is holding a coil of thick rope.

"Please stop chasing after me. I must finish all the cleaning soon otherwise…" Just when she thought that her hectic day is finally over, there came her two seniors who are attempting to capture her and tie her up.

It seems like she's in the biggest pinch of her life.

And now the three are like in a game of tag with the two demons chasing after their prey.

"Akaya!! What the hell are you doing!! Hurry up, grab her and tie her up already!!" Niou complained impatiently. They've taken longer time to seize the girl from moving.

"Just watch!! I'll capture her in no time!!" gritting his teeth, the senior assured however, he would never have thought that this one girl could make him go around the court; she made him chase after her.

'I'm losing to this girl? Impossible!!' he thought snootily 'There's no way I will lose!!'

"I'll definitely get my hands on you" Kirihara declared as he charged towards the girl who is still running away from them.

He decided to use some tactics instead of letting his prey run freely in an open field.

It took Kirihara few minutes to corner the girl towards the edge of the fencing. He spread his arms wide and with a rather devilish smile he declare again "Now let's see where you can you escape to now, jinx"

Being cornered by her senior with her back leaning in full force against the supple fence, she asked in a small trembling voice.

"What…what do you want??"

Just before the junior ace is about to charge towards the girl, a stern voice impeded his action.

"What are you two doing?!"

"Buchou!!"

TBC

* * *

**AN:** Phew, another chapter, another update. First I must not forget to apologize to all Niou & Kirihara fans. I've turned them into super baddies, but, but I promise I'll definitely do something to make up for all the shortcomings.

I would also like to thank all my friends here for spending your precious time to read my story. I really hope that anyone who read this would drop me a review. Please tell me how you feel. Give me more encouragement so that I don't feel like losing my inspiration and the will to continue. Please, please, please…onegaishimasu

Once again, thank you to all of you who read and reviewed this story. I would like to dedicate this story to all my friends who is still supporting me after so many years, being here for me, showing me your patience and guidance. I'm sure you all know who you are right, my dear friends, LOLz.

This story is also dedicated to all Sakuno fans. She's my favorite Tenipuri Hime. Please support her till the end ne

The next chapter: Musume no Shichi Henge – The Girl's Transformation

Dewa gokigenyo

mi-chan yori


	5. The Girl’s Transformation

Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume

Genre: Humor/Romance/Drama

Pairing: Yukimura/Sakuno

Scene: Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku

Note: For Japanese/Chinese, surname/family name/last name comes first.

Cast Introduction:

Ryuzaki Sakuno (1st Year): Our female protagonist who starts her senior high school life in Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Yukimura Seiichi (3rd Year): Our male protagonist; labeled as the most beautiful man, prince charming of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Sanada Genichirou (3rd Year): Vice captain of Rikkai Dai Tennis Club. Consider the second best player after Yukimura; one of the three demons, the Emperor.

Yanagi Renji (3rd Year): One of the three demons. Like Seigaku's Inui Sadaharu he is a data specialist. He's quiet and soft spoken.

**Niou Masaharu (3rd Year): Scariest player of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku. Niou is only player who dares to stand up to the Emperor. He is an all rounder player. Labeled as trickster not because of he loves to pull pranks on people but because he is 'trick play' specialist who can guess an opponent's moves about 10 moves ahead. Still his character is unknown by most of his teammates. He's a narcissist and likes strategic and cunning girls, hates weaklings. **

Other cast: Yagyu Hiroshi (3rd Year), Marui Bunta (3rd Year), Kuwahara Jackal (3rd Year), Kirihara Akaya (2nd Year). I'm still not too sure how to portray these characters; but since it said paranoid; it couldn't be possible for me to make them like originality; I'm expecting OOCness.

Standard Disclaimer: Tenpuri belongs to Konomi-sensei.

Warning: Sakuno-centric. Please do not continue if you're not a big Sakuno fans. Could be super OOC, a little paranoid, readers are advised to stop reading if you find this disturbing. Contain spoiler of the final chapter of Tenipuri.

"…" denotes speech

'…' denotes thoughts

"…" _denotes flashback_

**Bold denotes song lyrics **

**Song title: Issei no koe (One voice) by Kita Shuuhei. **

* * *

Recap of Chapter 4:

Being cornered by her senior with her back leaning in full force against the supple fence, she asked in a small trembling voice.

"What…what do you want??"

Just before the junior ace is about to charge towards the girl, a stern voice impeded his action.

"What are you two doing?!"

"Buchou!!"

**

* * *

**

Chp 5: **Musume no Shichi Henge – The Girl's Transformation **

* * *

"Kuso, it's too late now" Niou complained beneath his breath upon seeing their captain entering the training ground.

"Yukimura-senpai" the girl quickly run towards her savior and stood behind him so that she could hide from the two players who keeps on glaring at her.

The rest of the players were too shock when they realized that the training ground is now in a very devastating condition with several baskets toppled and balls scattered all over the place.

"What happened?!" Marui asked.

"She caused all this mess" the two devils immediately point fingers against Sakuno.

"I…I…didn't…" she said in a soft inaudible voice.

"Renji, what do you think?" Yukimura turn to Yanagi to seek for suggestion.

"There are two issues here." he replied "One, Niou and Akaya chased after Ryuzaki-san and causes this commotion, and that's the fact. Two, based on what we have here now, the mess should have been done possible by some herd of mad cows was successfully accomplished by Ryuzaki-san alone, this is another new finding of her destructive ability"

"As expected from our renowned Ms. Disaster" Marui added in jest.

"And now, it is up to the two of you, Yukimura and Sanada to decide what to do" Yanagi ended shortly.

"I see" with that said, the captain sighed heavily before diverting his attention back to the three troublemakers.

"Niou, Akaya…what are you guys doing with the scissor and rope??" he asked.

"To cut…" before Akaya could tell the truth, Niou stopped his junior by launching an elbow attack on the side of his waist. The trickster then pulled and held Kirihara towards him with one hand to keep his mouth shut.

"We're trying to show her some magic tricks with these" Niou reasoned coolly.

"A pair of scissor and a coil of rope?" Sanada raised one brow.

"Yeah, we tried to demonstrate to her the tricks behind some great escaping magic"

Upon hearing Niou's explanation, the players' expressions were shown obviously that they were not convinced by the trickster's justification.

"Is that true?" with a stern question asked by the emperor, everyone turn towards the girl who is now hiding behind their captain.

Despite of the fact that Yukimura is still supporting the injured leg with a crutch, he is able to maintain his body balance when Sakuno used him as a shield to hide from the others.

"Y…Yes" her voice is softer than usual.

"Yukimura, what was she saying?" Yanagi asked and when he moved closer to her, she moved away, leaving the captain to shield her away from the data specialist. Her face is now pressing against Yukimura's back.

This is a very dangerous situation. It will definitely trigger Sanada's protective mode since he is renowned for overly protectiveness towards the team's captain from crazy fan girls' attack.

At any rate, this girl will be killed mercilessly by the Emperor's secret weapon, the ultimate dead glare.

Right now Yukimura could clearly sense Sanada's rage and before the situation turns deadly, he must think of a way to stop the time bomb from ticking.

While Niou and Kirihara are eager to see how the girl would be sharing the same crucial fate, the rest really hope to stop the emperor from instigating further.

It's been a very hectic training day for them and they don't have much time left. They must first clean up the mess so that tomorrow's training will be on schedule.

As for being Yukimura, he has great sense of responsibility and he would definitely protect anyone whom he takes in.

"Guys, let's not waste our time. First of all, we must quickly clear up this mess" Yukimura said and with that, all players began to focus on their precious training ground. It's now in a devastating state.

The treasurer, Yanagi immediately took out the club's budgetary book to do the calculus.

"Hm…another four baskets goes with the trash. The balls were soiled and tarnished. What a disaster" his hand moved up to rub his throbbing temples as he declared sourly. Seeing all the negative figures makes him woozy.

As soon as Yanagi finalized the budget balance, Sanada walks towards Niou and Kirihara.

"I shall punish the three of you by cleaning up this mess" he declared in stern finality.

"What?!" While Niou had already predicted that this would be the outcome, his poor and carefree junior, Kirihara was screaming in despair upon learning the cruel fate that they are about to face.

"Why?" he asked with disbelieve.

"Isn't it obvious?" Jackal shook his head, feeling sorry for his poor junior who perished without knowing what crime he committed. Well, that could be well comprehended. He's just a puppet who did things under the influence of the trickster, Niou.

"The three of you are punished for causing all these mess" the half Brazilian continued.

"We caused the mess?!" it seems like Kirihara never gets tired of defending himself. That can't be help since all their initial intention is to **attack**, seize Sakuno, tie her up and cut off the long fringes so that it won't be blinding her vision and hence it helps to reduce her wobbliness.

Both Niou and Kirihara agreed that this would be a 'one stone hit two birds' strategy. They went through the trouble of acting friendly towards her, offering her that they are about to teach her the 'tricks behind some great escaping magic' but it seems like the girl seems to possess some instinct, she refused immediately and that ticks his nerves.

Unable to manage his eagerness, Kirihara tried to grab Sakuno by force but she was fast enough to escape from him and with the help of Niou, the two of them ending up chasing after her.

"We might be at fault for chasing after her but that doesn't mean that we were the one who caused these mess" Kirihara said as a matter of factly.

Upon hearing that Sanada, without any hesitation he raised his hand and is about to slap the junior who retaliated and stopped when someone impeded his action by grabbing his hand.

"What the…" Everyone eyes widen upon seeing the one who impeded the emperor turns out to be Sakuno.

The emperor could felt the draftiness and dampness of her tiny hands and he assumed that this might be due to her fear for him.

"Please…don't…" she begged with a trembling voice.

"Let go. I won't yield my strength even if you're a woman" Sanada warned coldly at the same time telling her to release him.

"She's quite interesting" Yanagi commented quietly while the rest of the members except Yukimura couldn't help but had their jaws dropped upon witnessing the girl going against the renowned Great Emperor of Rikkai Dai Tennis Club.

"Please…please…stop…"

It really pissed Sanada when she refused to let go despite of getting a clear perception of his admonition, yet, he have to recognize her courage for stopping him. Aside from Yukimura and Niou, she's the first one among the whole female nation who dares to go against him.

"I…I'll take the responsibility. I'll clean up all the mess, but please don't punish Niou-senpai and Kirihara-senpai"

Indeed, during the past weeks the girl has proven to have some good traits. Despite of being extremely shy, mellow and fragile; accident prone and with low self-esteem and carries bad luck wherever she goes, she is a good girl with extreme sense of kindness. That is why there are many players who tend to take advantage of her.

"Hey, let go of him, you little jinx!! I don't need your help!" The arrogant aced said angrily.

Although he heaved a sigh that someone had stopped the stern vice captain from slapping him. However he's also not very pleased that the person turns out to be Sakuno and to make the situation worst, she's pleading for the emperor's clemency. She even said that she would bear all the responsibility.

"I don't need a weakling to plead for me either" Niou came forth and took Sakuno's wrist.

"Sanada, we'll clean up the mess right away…" the trickster continues "…so can you also let go now?" his sea-green orbs focus on the girl's trembling form, his voice towards her is unusually normal.

"Niou…senpai" Kirihara regarded the trickster for a moment. It seems likes the two of them really thinks similarly.

"Guess that's what the said 'Birds with same feathers flew with the same flock'" the junior ace smirked.

"Very well then" with that said Sanada put his hand down and at the same time Sakuno also released them.

"I'll give you all two hours to clean this mess up. Don't slack off" he continued.

"Hai, hai" Niou wave his hand as he replied nonchalantly.

"Cheh, I thought there would be more to come" Marui muttered with slight disappointment. He could hear Jackal and Hiroshi heaving sighs of relief.

Since the problem has already been resolved in such way, the rest of the players were told to go home while the captain and vice captain were to stay in the club house to monitor the three detainees.

It took the girl quite sometimes to regain her composure. It is very obvious that she's is still very shock by her own action.

"I…I…" For a moment, her mind totally went blank.

"Oi, don't just stand here!! We've got mess to clean up. Don't waste my time!!" Kirihara fumed.

Before Yukimura and Sanada proceed to return to the club house, Sakuno called again.

"Sanada-senpai!" Her clear voice startled everyone.

Sanada did not say anything, he just turn back to face her.

"Thank you…" she managed to utter these words despite of being glanced by the emperor.

He gave another nod before turn to leave again.

"How cute, she called Sanada 'senpai'" while walking Marui mused perceptibly.

"All juniors did that…" Jackal raised a brow. He doesn't know why his partner would suddenly make such comments.

"Believe me, Kuwahara-kun, no female nations would even dare to talk to Sanada, not to mention of calling him 'Senpai'" Marui remarked with a faked baritone as he reply his partner.

These happy moments lasted shortly when the Emperor came forth and give a knuckle knock on the volley specialist's head.

"Ouch!!"

"That's the reward for gossiping"

"Sana-chan is a meanie" it seems like Marui's teasing has no border and perhaps the team members including Sanada had gotten used to his attitude, they always chooses to ignore him when he crack puns.

* * *

It's already quarter past eight in the evening. In the big and quiet club house, there left only Yukimura and Sanada.

For the past hours, the two had been standing next to the window to monitor the three detainees who serves their punishment. It seems like they were too focused with the monitoring, they talked less than ten sentences.

"Yukimura, I think you should take a rest" Sanada suggested. As a matter of fact, the captain is still recuperating from his injury. As a friend as well as the vice captain, Sanada felt that there's a need to remind Yukimura to take care of himself.

"I'm fine. Thank you" the captain said.

"Okay"

Indeed the three detainees had taken the punishment seriously. It took them less than two hours to clean up all the mess. The only thing left now is to clean all the dirtied balls.

Most of the credit goes to Niou and Kirihara. They had taken the punishment as an opportunity to practice their ball controlling skills.

As for Sakuno, she was assigned by the trickster to sit on the bench to clean all the dirtied balls and she's taking this task with diligence.

"You're not done yet??" Kirihara furrowed his brow when he registered that there are five more baskets of dirtied balls to be cleaned.

"N…no…" she stammered.

"So slow…" he complained.

"I…I'm sorry" she apologized.

"Don't expect us to do your part too" he said bluntly again.

"H…hai" she agreed feebly.

While Kirihara continues to bully the girl, Niou went over to the piles of balls which Sakuno already cleaned.

He picked up one and inspected it. It surprised him to see that the ball is as clean as it could be comparable to a new one. No wonder she's still doing the chore now.

Right after the inspection, Niou put the ball back and proceed to carry two baskets of cleaned tennis balls back to the club house.

"Senpai?? What are you doing?" Kirihara asked curiously. He hoped that the senior won't do something irrational like staining the balls again so that the girl will have to clean it again.

"Obviously, I'm not going to do what you had in mind. I'm going to put all these balls back to the club house" Niou smirked.

"Oh…okay" Kirihara was dumbfounded for a moment.

"So, you're lucky that the two of us are good guys, just clean all the balls properly. We're taking those back to the club house first" with that said, Kirihara also carries two baskets of balls with him.

As soon as the two reached the club house entrance, Yukimura opened the door to greet the two.

"Thanks for all the efforts" he said.

"We'd enjoyed the extra training program" that's what Niou replied.

"Where's Sakuno-san?" Yukimura asked.

"That girl still has few more baskets to go" Kirihara replied.

After hearing that, Yukimura took one ball from the basket and inspects it.

"Now, the two of you can go home and rest. Be prepared for tomorrow's training" Sanada said.

"Hai!!" the two replied in unison.

"Thanks for the day" with that said Yukimura politely excuse himself before he leaves the club house.

"Buchou? Where is he going?" Kirihara pondered discernibly.

"To the training field of course" Niou replied. Though he did not say anything right after he inspected the ball, that girl definitely deserves some credits.

* * *

Sakuno never stops her hands from working. While cleaning, she also counts the numbers of balls she cleaned just to make sure that its tally with the inventory. Aside from doing this, she also does something that is quite abnormal. For every ball she cleaned, she apologized for dirtying them.

**You're making that face again, trying to hide your weakness  
Behind those eyes, your in pain. If it's the real you...  
Thinking, crying by yourself, in anxiety, but why do you carry those pain?  
Let me help you**

"I'm so sorry. My clumsiness had made 'all of you' suffered"

"I'm sure the balls are happy that you've cleaned them well" the captain's gentle voice startled the girl.

"Yukimura-senpai…"

"Oh, did I startle you?"

"Yes…" she replied with honesty.

"I'm sorry…" he lowered his head to hide his embarrassment, his beautiful eyes softened when he smiled bashfully.

Upon hearing that, Sakuno immediately shook her head with disapproval "I…I…must thank you, thank you for coming here to see me"

"The pleasure is mine" this time he smiled gaily at her.

That was an unexpected lady-killer smile fatal attack from Yukimura and it's too much for Sakuno to bear that it instantly froze her body.

After observing the girl's behavior for a week, he finally confirmed that she's an extremely shy girl. She would freak herself easily. She could faint after seeing a topless male. That happened few days ago when some players were in the club house changing and she happened to see them.

She was then sent to the infirmary by a player who found her fainted outside the clubhouse with massive nosebleeds.

There was a moment of awkward silence. Perhaps coming here to praise the girl for her hard work is not a very good idea. He decides to leave the girl alone.

"I think I'm disturbing you now. I'm taking my leave…" just when he was about to leave, Sakuno stopped him.

"Ano…Senpai…would you like to s…stay?" she asked softly at last.

This has taken Yukimura by surprise. Now that's really an unexpected twist of event.

"Can I??" he asked again before doing so and she gave a nod.

Without hesitating, Yukimura took the seat next to the girl.

"Thank you"

**If you think you can't do it right now, it's fine to do it a little bit  
at a time**

**Those without wings like us only think that we can't fly  
I will call for you with all my might so that you won't get lost  
I will lift your heart and let it ride the wind, with our voices as one  
**

Right after seeing the injured captain occupied the seat next to her, she felt a lot more relieved. The reason why she offered him to stay is to ensure that he did not burden his injured leg. She's glad that he'd accept her offer.

Yukimura glanced sideward at the girl who resumed her chores awhile ago. This time she's doing it quietly. He would rather see her doing her work in her 'my pace' mode.

She is always doing things that amaze him. Sometimes her funny actions make him laugh too.

"Sakuno-san, I must apologize for what Niou and Kirihara tried to do to you"

"Senpai…" it seems like the captain never fail to thrill her. Both of her hands stop working again. Sakuno doesn't know what to say when Yukimura apologized to her.

"It's not senpai's fault that they treated me like that" she said anxiously at last "I was born under an ominous star, that's why. Bad luck will follow me wherever I go"

****

I can't reach you if you don't let me help you. You will feel pain even  
if you run away  
I will tightly hold your hands, I will prevent you from hiding your feelings

**Don't grieve by yourself, the pain will fly away  
Let's move on from today and onto tomorrow**

Yukimura was astounded that they managed to pull off with a normal conversation. He thought that the girl would rather choose not to talk.

"I'm just curious. Are you aware of what they were trying to do to you back then?"

"Yes…" she confessed coyly "…that's why I tried to run away"

"If they use a different kind of approach, would you choose not to run away?"

"There's no way I can do that!!" she concluded "I'm too clumsy to do perform such difficult magic trick!!"

For a moment Yukimura was speechless. It really startled him to learn that this girl actually believed in Niou and Kirihara.

'This girl is so innocent' he thought jadedly.

**It is probably impossible to change things by yourself  
We may not have wings, but we can fly where ever you want  
I will sing your name so that you won't forget  
Even if are away for away from each other, we will face the same sky and  
shout in one voice**

"It's not like what you think, Sakuno-san" Yukimura has come to a decision to tell her the truth.

"The truth is they attempted to tie you up and to cut off the long fringes that covered your face"

"Cut…t…my hair?!" Sakuno's eyes widen upon hearing that from the captain. That also triggers some part of her miserable past that she encountered in her previous school.

"W…why?" her voice trembles when she asked. Her tiny trembling hands moved involuntarily to cover up the front part of her hair.

Sakuno's weird action has once again amused Yukimura. To him, she looks like a poor little beagle.

"That was a really good reaction you have now." he managed to control the urge to laugh out loud and it took him few seconds to recoup his composure.

"You see. Renji and others were saying that one of the reasons behind all the mishaps you encountered could be due to the long fringes that blocked your vision" he continued without any perseverance of what was discussed earlier.

**  
If you pick another path and get lost again  
We will look at the radiant sky, a thousand voice will be heard  
If you think you can't do it right now, it's fine to do it a little bit  
at a time**

**  
Those without wings like us only think that we can't fly  
I will call for you with all my might so that you won't get lost  
I will lift your heart and let it ride the wind, with our voices as one **

There was a moment of significant silence. It really saddens her to know the truth. Tears escaped from the corner of her eyes.

"I should have realized this earlier. There's no way for a girl like me would be accepted." she said feebly.

Without a word, Yukimura moved over to embrace her. He sympathize her.

"Brace yourself to change and someday, they'll definitely accept you." he said at last.

"I'll lend you my strength. Would you brace yourself and get ready to change?"

"Senpai…" upon hearing that, Sakuno pulled away from him. She speaks no further.

Yukimura watched as the girl as she dried tears and stood up and walk over to one of the benches next to them where Niou placed the pair of scissor which he left behind.

Sakuno took the scissor and pass it to Yukimura.

"Please…please help me to change"

"The pleasure is mine" he smiled.

That night, Yukimura marked the most significant changes of Sakuno's life. He pledged to lend her his strength, to change her.

* * *

The next morning Sakuno took the regulars by surprised when she stood at the school entrance to greet them; her appearance is what surprised them the most.

"G…good morning, Sanada-senpai, Yanagi-senpai, Marui-senpai, Jackal-senpai" she greeted the players with a ninety degrees bow.

"Er…who are you?" Jackal asked curiously. Though the frame of the girl and the distinguished twin braids looks familiar, he dare not make any conclusion. And before the girl could reply, Marui came forth to confirm her identity.

"Well, well, aren't you our temporary club manager, Sakuno-chan??" he said in a sing song tone.

"Oi Marui!! How can you be so sure about this?" the half Brazilian immediately pulled his teammate back to his side.

"She is" Sanada confirmed reluctantly.

"Fuku-buchou, even you confirmed??"

"I hate to repeat myself but didn't I tell you that no female nations would even dare to talk to Sanada, not to mention calling him 'Senpai'; only Sakuno-chan would do that"

"Indeed, this is a very interesting findings" Yanagi added.

Right now the girl felt rather awkward. Last night she was told by Yukimura to wait in front of the school entrance and greet all the tennis club's players.

Though the level of awkwardness is increasing each second, the girl must uphold her promise she had made with the captain.

"_Listen, first thing in the morning, you must greet all our players with your new look and this is your first trial" _his words came into her mind again.

Yukimura, Yagyu, Niou and Kirihara arrived shortly after the others. She greeted them with the same manners she did earlier.

Surprisingly, the other three seeded players were not able to recognize the girl instantly. They thought that she must be one of the fangirls. Then again, if she really happened to be a fangirls, Sanada should have eliminated her long before Yukimura arrived.

"Good morning, Sakuno-san" Yukimura came forth to greet the girl with a smile. She immediately covers her face to avoid the killer smile.

"Senpai…you're too bright" she added stiffly.

"Sakuno??" Kirihara bellowed shockingly. He took sometimes to recompose himself before dashing towards to the girl and to study her.

Her long fringes were trimmed and shortened to the length that leveled with her eyebrows.

She looks more pleasant, no, just by shortening the fringes, she looks totally different. They realized that she has round big attractive eyes. She looks just like a living shoujo manga character.

Just when Kirihara's face is about few inches away from her, hot steam dispersed from her face. Trickles of blood could be seen running down from her nostrils.

"Wait!! Stop it!! You're disgusting!!" Kirihara got panicked when her nosebleed worsened.

"Affirmed!! This girl is definitely Ryuzaki Sakuno" the group said in unison.

"It's still unknown if the changes is for better or worst" Yanagi noted.

"What a dreadful beginning of the day" Hiroshi sighed.

"So bright" Sakuno muttered faintly before losing her consciousness.

"Someone, help me to carry her to the infirmary!!" the junior ace bellowed with terror.

"There's still a long way to go" Yukimura smirked.

TBC

**

* * *

**

Next chapter: Temptation One – Target Marui Bunta.

AN: Dear friends. I managed to finish off this chapter. I have to say that during the time when I was typing this chapter, I wondered if I should continue. Despite of being constantly discourage by my parents; I'm also feeling discouraged because I realized that the story is on hit list and yet there are still many readers who chooses not to review.

Like I always say; the story is made possible because of readers' encouragement and supports. Even if it's something like "Update soon" it encourages me.

After posting the announcement I realized that the feedback is quite good. I hope it'll continue this way.

All kudos and dedications goes to those readers who helped me and encouraged me. I really appreciate it. This story is made possible because of your encouragement. The reason why I chose to insert this song, **Issei no Koe - One Voice**; is because I felt like I'm the one who's being saved and I feel like we're working hard together.

I hope you all would still enjoy reading this story and I hope that I'll still have the energy to write more. Please read and review.

P/S: The nosebleed part is the results of reading too much YamaNade manga (laugh).

Thank you!!

Cheers,

mi-chan yori


	6. Temptation One Target Marui Bunta

AN: Dear all friends and readers. Over the past weeks, things had been difficult for me but, it's all over now. I'm back to 'my pace' mode. And hopefully I'll be able to spend more times in writing and drawing. All my friends must have been missing me right now. I've been sabotaging the weekend plans with them so that I can keep this story updated and get it post up as soon as I can. Hee, hee, I must make up with them later.

It really brightens up my day, filled me with energy and increases my creativeness and inspirations as I read all of your reviews and encouragements. And not least, it seems like I can feel love is in the air.

Oh, another thing! I would like to introduce my KiriSaku one-shot to everyone. I've posted it in my 'Why Papa' story because I've been receiving many requests on this pairing. I hope that you all you spare sometimes to read this little gift I present to you all as a token of appreciation.

I'm pleased to present all of you with the update. Hope you all would enjoy reading this.

Please, please, please; leave me a review and tell me how you feel. Please keep on spoiling me!! You all rocks!!

* * *

Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume

Genre: Humor/Romance/Drama

Pairing: Yukimura/Sakuno

Scene: Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku

Note: For Japanese/Chinese, surname/family name/last name comes first.

Cast Introduction:

Ryuzaki Sakuno (1st Year): Our female protagonist who starts her senior high school life in Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Yukimura Seiichi (3rd Year): Our male protagonist; labeled as the most beautiful man, prince charming of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Sanada Genichirou (3rd Year): Vice captain of Rikkai Dai Tennis Club. Consider the second best player after Yukimura; one of the three demons, the Emperor.

Yanagi Renji (3rd Year): One of the three demons. Like Seigaku's Inui Sadaharu he is a data specialist. He's quiet and soft spoken.

Niou Masaharu (3rd Year): Scariest player of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku. He's a narcissist and likes strategic and cunning girls, hates weaklings.

**Yagyu Hiroshi (3rd Year): ****Is known as "The Gentleman" for his polite demeanor, especially in comparison to his doubles partner Masaharu Niou. Though usually calm, a latent aggressive side is apparent during tennis matches. Loves to read books like literatures and recites poets. He never reveals his dark secret to his teammates that he's actually a popular shoujo mangaka by the penname of YAHIRO.**

Other cast: Marui Bunta (3rd Year), Kuwahara Jackal (3rd Year), Kirihara Akaya (2nd Year). I'm still not too sure how to portray these characters; but since it said paranoid; it couldn't be possible for me to make them like original; I'm expecting OOCness.

Standard Disclaimer: Tenpuri belongs to Konomi-sensei.

WARNINGS ALERT:

Sakuno-centric. Please do not continue if you're not a big Sakuno fans.

Could be **SUPER OOC**, a little **PARANOID**, readers are advised to stop reading if you find this disturbing.

Contain spoiler of the final chapter of Tenipuri.

Ratings might change depending on progress of the storylines, hints of mature themes.

"…" denotes speech

'…' denotes thoughts

"…" _denotes flashback_

**Bold denotes song lyrics - Song's title: Asu he (Tomorrow) by Teruya Miho**

* * *

Recap of chapter 5:

"Affirmed!! This girl is definitely Ryuzaki Sakuno" the group said in unison.

"It's still unknown if the changes is for better or worst" Yanagi noted.

"What a dreadful beginning of the day" Hiroshi sighed.

"So bright" Sakuno muttered faintly before losing her consciousness.

"Someone, help me to carry her to the infirmary!!" the junior ace bellowed with terror.

"There's still a long way to go" Yukimura smirked.

**

* * *

**

Chapter 6: Temptation One – Target Marui Bunta.

* * *

RikkaiDai's training ground was alive with sounds of players' footsteps as they strolled or rushed to counter every ball that dispensed out from the pitching machines.

While other members were busy with their training; all the seeded players except Yukimura, are now gathered behind the club house.

There's a great intensity of aura surrounding them and by looking at their expression; one could easily comprehend that they're in a big pinch of facing a great deal of problem which needs to be resolved immediately.

"Let's do it" Niou suggested firmly.

Everyone watched eagerly as the self proclaimed genius, Marui Bunta laid his fingers on one of the last two raffle sticks which the vice captain held in his hand.

"Don't regret" Sanada smirked haughtily.

"Shut up!! You're disturbing my concentration" he said satirically, scrutinizing the face of the emperor.

"Just grab one!! It only left you and me now" provoked, the emperor challenged the volley specialist with equally dead glares.

"I'll choose this!!" with that said; Marui held firmly on the stick which he choose and drew it out from Sanada's grip.

"We have a winner!!" the junior ace declared inventively.

"OH NO!!" Marui's face twitched unsightly as he screeched with grievance. "How could this be happening to me; the GENIUS?"

"See, I told you" Sanada said cynically. No one would blame the emperor for the way he is now. He's been holding the sticks for the past twenty minutes just to wait for Marui to make up his mind.

At the end Marui still needs to face the crucial fact that he's the chosen one.

"I can't believe that I'll be the next babysitter!! A tennis genius like me should spend his time devote in tennis games and practices!!"

"Marui-kun, we'll leave her to your care now" Yagyu patted the shoulders of their petite teammate and wish him luck.

"You better get going now…" Niou warned "…Yukimura is waiting for you to pass the shirt to that girl"

"This is the worst day of my life!!" despite of admitting the defeat, Marui never fails to steal a chance of complaining.

"I'm the one who'll be lending my shirt to her and now I'm even assigned as her babysitter?!"

"You shouldn't waste so much time crying over the spilled milk" Sanada said as a matter of factly "Yukimura and Ryuzaki are waiting for you in the infirmary"

"Isn't it obvious that I'm moving my ass now?" filled with rage, Marui stomped off to the infirmary.

"Sheesh, as cocky as usual" Niou commented teasingly.

"Sanada, do you think that it's okay to leave the task to Bunta alone?" Jackal asked with concern.

"There's nothing to be worried about. This is just a very simple task" Sanada replied stoically.

Jackal had a bad feeling that by assigning the Marui to monitor over Sakuno would eventually worsen the situation. He hoped that he's just being over sensitive.

"Bunta, if you do something silly that would bring down our good names; I'll cut off all tidings with you" the half Brazilian declared seriously at last.

* * *

It took the volley specialist longer time to reach the infirmary.

First he was convinced by his teammates to lend a piece of his extra shirt to the girl when they reasoned that theirs would be too large for her to fit in. And since among the team he is more minuscule in terms of body size compared to them, he is left with no choice but to oblige.

"Mou, I though I've already grown four centimeters taller but those monsters are growing faster" he pouted sadly over his height.

Just when he was in front of the doorstep; he heard a husky male voice coming out from inside the infirmary and that familiar voice is none others than their captain, Yukimura.

"Sakuno-san; it's too tight"

"S…senpai, please don't move so much. Please allow me to do it for you"

Marui fought against a quick flutter of panic upon hearing the conversation behind the door.

'She's attacking our captain' this is what instantly came into Marui's mind.

"Not…not there" the captain grunted in pain.

And that was the limit of Marui's endurance and he has finally come to a decision to dash into the room disregards of what he might be facing soon.

"Hold it righ…t…there…" As soon as he stomp into the room and was about to stop the girl from what she was doing.

"Bunta/Senpai??"

When Marui finally registered the situation and knew that he had made awfully wrong impression of what the two might be doing; he made a vague and oddly dismissive gesture with one elegant hand.

"Wow, what a nice weather" he managed to comment cheerfully which totally contradicts his present expression of severe mortification.

The captain raised one elegant brow as he mused over Marui's action. He could comprehend instantly of what the volley specialist had in mind; however he decided to let him off. He smiled at Marui as he welcomed him.

It irritated Marui that the captain did read his mood in silence. He felt a hitch in his pride.

And despite of that, it doesn't stop him from noticing what the girl is doing to Yukimura.

"Yukimura, what happened to your leg?" he asked with concern.

"Ah!! This…" before Yukimura could tell Marui the whole happenings; Sakuno inevitably interrupted their conversation.

"I…I'm sorry!!" she bowed lowly before Marui.

Yukimura watched amusing of how the girl apologized. She's like a criminal who is bowing before the Feudal Lord, Marui; pleading for forgiveness.

"What?! It's you again?!" Marui scratched his head with irritation.

"Now, what is it this time?" he asked impatiently for an explanation.

Words strangled in her throat when the volley specialist glared at her as if she had committed a very serious crime.

"I…I…"

"Bunta, why don't you come and help me to redo the bandages" the captain requested politely.

"Okay" with a nod, Marui went over to take over what the girl was doing.

"I…I'm sorry…" she apologized for the second time.

"Sakuno-san?" The captain gave her a disapproving look "You shouldn't be apologizing since you're not the one who is at fault"

"Yukimura, you're still defending her?"

"Bunta, there's no need for me to defend her or anyone who does nothing wrong" Yukimura managed to protect his distinguished patience as he speaks. Yet that doesn't stop the volley specialist to experience the stately charisma of the Child of God.

"When Sakuno-san regained her consciousness; the first thing she noticed was the loosen bandage of my injured foot"

"Fearing that I might trip by those loose bandages; she offered to redo the dressings for me."

"My…" Marui eyes widen with disbelieve. However he chose to believe Yukimura. The captain is a righteous man who does not lie.

"Why not ask the nurse to do it for?"

"As you can see, aside from Sakuno-san and me; there are no others here"

"I see. Then why did she apologize in the first place?" Sakuno was totally freaked by Marui's relentless prompting.

"I…I'm sorry"

The two stared at the flimsy girl with amusement. They finally noticed another trait of the girl. Habits could be such a scary thing.

"The dressing looks worst than before"

Upon hearing that Sakuno eyed worriedly at the captain.

"It is her efforts and sincerity that counts"

"Hai…hai"

* * *

**From far away, I hear a song  
My feelings floating towards the night sky...**

**And my soul is wandering  
Towards where time rest...**

Right after Marui finished tending Yukimura's bandages; he grabbed the paper bag and shoved it to the girl.

"Ryuzaki, "I've brought you a clean shirt. Go and change into it now!" the cocky player ordered.

"People would be freaked out by you and that blood tainted uniform" he added shortly.

Due to the bloody incident this morning; her own blood stained her uniform. When she regained her consciousness she was already lying in the bed of the infirmary. Sitting next to her was no other than the beautiful captain in waiting. The circumstances reminded her of their first meeting. He's always there for her whenever she opens up her eyes.

"H…hai" Immediately the girl gave another feeble nod and took the bag.

"T…thank you, M…Marui-senpai" the girl whispered bashfully.

"I warn you! Don't you dare to taint my shirt with your nosebleed!!" he ordered immediately.

"I…I'll try" she muttered feebly.

"What?"

"Yes!!"

"Good"

Just when the girl was about leave; disorientated, Marui raised an elegant brow.

"Where are you going?" he asked afterwards.

"T…to the bathroom" she replied with another trembling voice.

"Why the fuss? You can just do it here, right?"

"Bunta? Sakuno-san is a girl!" Yukimura said and Sakuno gave a nod "Show some respect"

Marui scanned the girl from head to toe.

Indeed right after she had the fringes shortened; she looks more appealing. She has become dazzled and disarmed by her characteristic features, vibrant coloring, soft and timid voice; a fragile-beauty type of girl.

It could be possibly due to the fact that their first impression of her was so obnoxious that it had somehow given more reason for him to show no interested with her.

"That's why I told her to change here. I have no interest in 'girls' especially those undeveloped types, so I have no intention to lay my hands on her. She's absolutely safe!" Marui declared cheerfully at last.

"Bunta!! That's a very disrespectful way to speak to a girl" Yukimura was rather stunned upon hearing such harsh declaration from his teammates. Whether it's unintentionally or deliberately, it would be unfair for the girl to receive such impertinent insults.

Indeed Sakuno was hurt by those unwelcoming critics however she refused to show them her dispirited look.

"Apologize to Sakuno-san now" the captain ordered immediately fearing that her mood might sink lower than par.

"But Sakuno-chan doesn't seems to mind" Bunta retaliated "Right?"

**It's as if I were watching tomorrow's dream  
With a loved one -  
Stars, please protect  
The splinters of my life**

"Marui-senpai is right…" Sakuno gave a timid nod as to agree with what Marui claimed. She then continue the rest in a faltering stream of words "I…I'll…change…my shirt…in…that area…over…there"

The stiff stillness that followed her statement tore through Sakuno's anxiousness like nails scraping over a window screen.

"Pl…please e…excuse me!!" Yukimura stared at her in incredulous surprise as she made her way towards one of the infirmary bed, her small trembling hand proceed to pull the curtain to conceal the place where she intend to get changed.

"See, she's so obedient" the cocky self proclaimed genius gave his captain a toothy smile when Sakuno give into his suggestion unwillingly.

"That's because you're lucky that she is Sakuno-san" Yukimura said deprecatingly, trying to guide his adolescent teammate to the right awareness.

"You should try to learn more about a girl's feeling" he suggested.

"More importantly, we should treat all girls with utmost respects, especially towards someone who respects you in return"

**From far away, I hear a song,  
My feelings returning from the night sky...**

**I believe in  
The strong gentleness**

"Yukimura…" The captain words had somehow kicked some sense into his mind. Indeed no matter how clumsy the girl is; she stills uphold integrity and respects towards them, her 'seniors'.

Blinded by the fact that the girl is a complete klutz who had almost brought down the whole club to poverty; Marui failed to remember that she had also work very hard to repent for what she caused.

In a week, she managed to remember the entire team players' names and their faces. She had shown utmost diligence in taking care of their captain. She even shows signs of audacity to throw away her old self and brace to change.

"I'm sorry…" this time Marui apologized "…I was such a jerk"

"Apologize not to me but to Sakuno-san" Yukimura smiled with satisfaction. At least his teammates aren't those stubborn types of people who have no self appraisal.

**Right now, I'm thinking very fondly  
About the usual days -  
Let's turn this joy of being alive  
Into something else**

Before the two could continue their conversation further; the dangling sound of the curtain rails attracted their attention.

The girl steps out from the partial concealed area. Though many suggested that Marui's shirt would be the best to suit Sakuno, yet, it is still too large for a petite figure like her.

However the two have to admit that the tennis club's tee does looks good on a girl.

"How about asking them to make one for Sakuno-san?" Yukimura suggested.

"It would be great!!" Marui nodded with another toothy smile.

"No…no" the girl immediately shook her head.

"Why?" Marui raised his brow. Seeing her frantic looks it makes him wants to tease her further.

"Or…" the red head closed the gap between them and proceed to hoist the girl into his arm as he bent his head closer and whispered against her ears, his breathe is warm on her neck "…are you by any chance had taken the liking of wearing mine instead?" he teased her mercilessly.

She immediately turned away from him to avoid his pair of beautiful thistle orbs that deliberately stared into hers. All the surge of emotions was instantly reflected on the girl's face. Her cheeks are now all red and feverish.

"T…that's not what I mean!!" It took the girl sometimes to brace herself to deny every statement which Marui's made out earlier.

"Then, you should give me a more sensible explanation and depends on what you're going to say, otherwise I would not let go of you; understand?"

The prodding has been relentless and Sakuno began to rebel against it but it was in veil. She's too nervous to do anything.

Yukimura watched silently over Marui's action. He's indeed happy to see that Marui is doing this in order to make up with her, however, he's reluctant to admit it even to himself, that he had been curiously disturbed by what was happening between the two.

'Could it be protectiveness or compassions or both?'

"Ahem…" Yukimura had come to a decision that he must do something about it. He took it as if the girl is sending him a SOS signal.

"Bunta, I think you've already enjoyed the teasing game as much as you wanted…" he interrupted "…why don't you show some sympathy to this poor girl and let go of her?"

Since Yukimura had already said so, Marui have no reason to reject his suggestion.

"Okay" with that said Marui immediately let go of the girl.

"De, why did you refuse to get a shirt for yourself?" the volley specialist asked again.

"Be…because, I'm only a temporary manager. Eventually I'll have to leave the club when Yukimura-senpai recovers." Nervously active, the girl's head dropped as she explained coyly at last.

**From far away, I hear a song  
My feelings floating towards the night sky...**

**My soul is opposing  
The place where time rests -  
It's as if I were watching tomorrow's dream  
With a loved one...  
**

This was what they initiated earlier. Once Yukimura recovers, Sakuno will have to retire from her designation as the club's manager and leave the club.

For a second none of them spoke; and then the volley specialist placed a firm hand on her shoulder.

"Then you should decide of whether to change the plan or to stick with it" he said in finality.

Stunned for a moment, Sakuno stared at Marui. At this moment he doesn't seem like someone she knew before. The way he talks to her is totally different from awhile ago. He's sounds more approachable and cheery towards her now.

Unable to comprehend his sudden mood change; she gave a nod. She then turned to look at the captain who gave her a thumb up sign. It seems like the volley specialist is able to blend in with her, he had somehow accepted her.

"Let's head back to the tennis club now, shall we?" Yukimura suggested and the two nodded in response.

* * *

While escorting Yukimura and Sakuno, Marui resumed his usual habits, chewing bubblegum.

She'd find it peculiar. She also sees him chewing a piece of gum during trainings.

If her memories did not fail her, she remembered that back in few years ago when she watched the Kantou Tournament, the volley specialist was also seen chewing bubblegum when he matched against the Golden Pair.

'Perhaps Marui-senpai really loves chewing gums. Could he be a gum addicted' she mused curiously.

Yukimura who's walking beside Sakuno could see that she has been staring at Marui for quite sometimes. Her expression looks puzzled.

"Sakuno-san? You looked perplexed? Is there anything that's been bordering you?" he then asked softly, interrupting the girl's thoughts.

"Yes…ah…no…yes…" after hearing how she shuddered when she replied him, her brows knitted together, showing him a more perplexing expression.

For a few seconds Yukimura looked amused, then to her intense chagrin, he laughed.

Yukimura's sudden outburst of laughter had also startled Marui that he had immediately turn back to look at the couple. He had never seen Yukimura laugh like this before.

"What…what happened?"

Yukimura was shaking his head and laughed unrestrainedly for several seconds before he had breath enough to speak.

"My dear Sakuno-san," he said at last. "…she's so priceless!!"

Her face is now beet red. She must have been caught making those weird faces again.

"What did she do?" Marui's curiosity is building up. He's dying to know what had the girl done that had made their captain laughed like this.

"I did not do anything!!" Sakuno denied swiftly.

"I was just curious that why Marui-senpai is always chewed gums"

He stared at the girl who suddenly too interest of him for a moment before replying her.

"There's no way I'm going to answer you" he said in a mixed of little embarrassment and exasperation.

"I'm sorry…" she immediately apologized to him. Indeed he has the right of not telling her. This is his life after all.

Yukimura looked at her for a moment and his violet eyes were still glistering with the laughter he barely restrained.

He then gestured the girl to go closer to him and she did. He leveled his head next to Sakuno so that he can whisper words to her closely.

"You see, Bunta was…"

"Yukimura…" Marui was totally mortified when he sees that their team captain is actually gossiping!! Not only that, he, as a key person of the club is now divulging his teammate's weakness to a mere girl!!

No, rather then by labeling her as 'mere' she could indeed become a prospected spy of their rival team.

Thinking that the only way to resolve this, Marui decide that he is going to dominate over the facts.

"Fine!! The fact of me having stamina issue is not new to anyone!!" he declared openly "But a genius like me had found a way to solve the problem!!"

Both Yukimura and Sakuno were rather overwhelmed by Marui's declaration.

"Senpai…you have stamina issue?" Sakuno asked feebly however blended within that soft voice, there's a surge of anxiousness.

"What? Didn't Yukimura tell you everything already?"

"No…He only said that you really love eating candies and confectioneries"

At this moment Marui Bunta experienced the state of solidification for the very first time in his life. How stupid of him to actually doubted Yukimura for doing such lowly act.

"Bunta, are you okay?"

"Yukimura..." Bunta wailed tearfully.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have doubted you" with that said, the volley specialist went over to bury his teary eyes on Yukimura's chest.

"Bunta, what are you doing?! Stop this!! It's so gross!!"

While Yukimura find Bunta's action quite aggravating, Sakuno finds them radiant and enchanting.

She could feel blood rushing rapidly from her all over her body and she knew what is most probably to happen next. Just to prevent it, she immediately turned away from the two radiant beings.

Though it's extremely excruciating for her to just look at these pair of radiant people, she had hoped that someday she would be able to overcome her phobias and low self confidence. She hopes someday she would be able to get out of her cocoon and be like one of them.

**

* * *

**

Right now, my heart is stepping towards  
The joy of being alive -  
Overcoming pain,  
Towards a brilliant tomorrow.

It was a perfect day and it deserves a perfect starts. All the players including the regulars are preparing for morning practice.

"Marui-kun, we appreciate your efforts yesterday" Yagyu gave the volley specialist a flattering pat on his shoulder for baby sitting Sakuno.

"Oh, that was a piece cake." He said proudly "Nothing is impossible for me, the genius!"

When Bunta open up his cabinet to keep his belongings, he found his piece of his spare shirt and a petite sized candy box.

And he knew instantly that it was Sakuno who placed these here in his cabinet.

She had also left him a note for him too.

SENPAI, THANKS FOR LENDING ME YOUR SHIRT.

I FELT SORRY FOR YOU WHEN I LEARNED ABOUT YOUR STAMINA ISSUE. WHEN I WAS IN SEIGAKU, A SENIOR HAD TAUGHT ME A RECIPE AND IT IS IDEAL FOOD FOR IMPROVING STAMINA. I HOPE YOU WOULD GIVE THIS A TRY!!

SAKUNO YORI

Right after reading the note, Marui proceed to open up the box but was interrupted by the trickster.

"Hmm, a present?" Niou pried sheepishly "Who's it from? Fangirls?"

"No, this is from Sakuno-chan" he replied nonchalantly.

"Oh, and what's inside the box?" Niou prompted.

Soon the others also gathered around the volley specialist as they were curious about the tiny gift he received from their temporary manager.

"Wow, I see. Bunta; you've gotten so acquainted to Ryuzaki-kun" Jackal commented.

"Good for your Marui-kun" Yagyu added chivalrously.

"Yeah…they said people who do good deeds to others, good luck will comes to you in ten folds" he said happily "She's a good girl after all"

"Hahaha…don't jump over the moon yet. She could be pulling a prank out of you" Niou implied as he laughed wickedly.

"Stop feeding me with these horrible thoughts of yours" he shuddered.

"Why don't you open it up so that we can have a look" Yukimura suggested.

"Yukimura?!" it beats those guys to actually find the captain prying on other people's business which he usually don't.

"Okay" and with that Marui opened the box and to his surprised the box is full of crystallite-marble like candies in rainbow colors.

"Hola, these are so beautiful" he complimented as he took one out to examine it closely "How the hell did she make these?"

"Hm, it looks tasty. Let me have one" and just before Niou almost have his hands on it; Marui moved away from his attack.

"Fat chance!! These are all mine!! And have you forgotten you've just said that these might be poisonous?"

"Cheh, so stingy!!" Niou fumed.

"So, I'm humbly accepting this" with that said, the volley specialist consumed the piece of candy in his hand.

And not long after that a dreadful scream could be heard coming from the tennis club house.

Meanwhile…

"I wondered how much will Marui-senpai gain from Inui-senpai's recipe" she mused happily.

"Hey, is Ryuzaki Sakuno in this class?" his sliver colored hair stands out among the group of students and everyone instantly recognize the renowned trickster.

"Kyah! It's Niou-sama!!" the fangirls in Sakuno's class screamed upon seeing their tennis idol.

"Niou-senpai?" Sakuno batted her lashes when she sees Niou cutting through the crowd and walk towards her.

As he came closer to her, she could felt his sinister aura, his eyes is now glaring at her.

He pulled her collar and hauled her closer to him before he speaks.

"What did you do to Bunta?!"

TBC…

* * *

AN: Phew, I finally managed to wrap up this chapter. It's been quite difficult for me to express all my ideas in writing. I hope you all would come to like the ending. I would also like to recommend readers to pay attention to the character's introduction as it will reflects the characters personality which I made up with. I guessed there's no way I could really portrait them with originality; I've decided to give it a little twist. I hope it will still be okay for all of you.

I would also like to take this opportunity to announce that I've decided to ask **yukisana**to be my beta reader. I hope that a crappy writer like me will be able to work well with her.

I can't wait to see what magical touch **yukisana-san** will present us. I'm so excited now!!

Finally, I would like to dedicate this story to all my friends and readers who supported me. You always know what to do when I'm really in need. Thank you so much!! (Hugzzzzzz)

Here's the title for next chapter of Once upon a time a Shy Musume.

Next Chapter: Temptation Two – Challenge Niou Masaharu


	7. Temptation Two Challenge Niou

Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume

Genre: Humor/Romance/Drama

Pairing: Yukimura/Sakuno

Scene: Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku

Note: For Japanese/Chinese, surname/family name/last name comes first.

Cast Introduction:

Ryuzaki Sakuno (1st Year): Our female protagonist who starts her senior high school life in Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Yukimura Seiichi (3rd Year): Our male protagonist; labeled as the most beautiful man, prince charming of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Sanada Genichirou (3rd Year): Vice captain of Rikkai Dai Tennis Club. Consider the second best player after Yukimura; one of the three demons, the Emperor.

Yanagi Renji (3rd Year): One of the three demons. Like Seigaku's Inui Sadaharu he is a data specialist. He's quiet and soft spoken.

Niou Masaharu (3rd Year): Scariest player of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku. He's a narcissist and likes strategic and cunning girls, hates weaklings. **I've decided to make him into a tsundere prince!!**

Yagyu Hiroshi (3rd Year): Is known as "The Gentleman" for his polite demeanor. He never reveals his dark secret to his teammates that he's actually a popular shoujo mangaka by the penname of YAHIRO. **An addicted Shounen Jump reader!!**

**Marui Bunta (3rd Year): He's a self declared genius, cheery otherwise arrogant player. And because of his arrogant nature, he speaks differently, contradicting his real feelings. He has stamina issue and was frequently seen chewing gums or takes sweets to obtain more energy. He's the fourth person who came to accept Sakuno despite of her clumsiness. The second person who got infected by her bad luck, maybe? **

Kuwahara Jackal (3rd Year), Kirihara Akaya (2nd Year). I'm still not too sure how to portray these characters; but since it said paranoid; it couldn't be possible for me to make them like original; I'm expecting OOCness.

Standard Disclaimer: Tenpuri belongs to Konomi-sensei.

WARNINGS ALERT:

Sakuno-centric. Please do not continue if you're not a big Sakuno fans.

Could be **SUPER OOC**, a little **PARANOID**, readers are advised to stop reading if you find this disturbing.

Contain spoiler of the final chapter of Tenipuri.

Ratings might change depending on progress of the storylines, hints of mature themes.

"…" denotes speech

'…' denotes thoughts

"_Italics_" _denotes flashback/Dream_

**Bold denotes song lyrics/Song: Chikaigoto – Sukoshi dake mou ichidou (Oath words - Just once more) by Iku**

"My!! It's Niou-sama!!" The fan girls in Sakuno's class screamed when they caught sight of their tennis idol.

"Niou-senpai?" Sakuno batted her eyelashes when she saw Niou cutting through the crowd, walking towards her.

As their distance closed up, she felt his sinister aura and his eyes are now glaring at her.

He grabbed her by the collar and pulled her closer to him before he speaks.

"What did you do to Bunta?!"

**Chapter 7: Temptation Two – Challenge Niou Masaharu**

The spectators who gathered around the training ground were all gawking when they saw the girl crash to the ground once again. They had lost count of the number of times she fell; yet despite of her beaten state, she had managed to stand up time after time.

The dirt was soft and cool on Sakuno's knees. She looked down at her feet, fully aware that her currently beaten states look filthy. But she did not care. The brunette brushed away sweaty hair that stuck on her face which blocked her sight.

"Niou-senpai!! I'm ready" She quickly positioned herself into a defensive stance when she confirmed to her challenger.

"She's up again?!" A spectator remarked in disbelief.

"Unbelievable!!!" Another exclaimed.

"Ryuzaki, well done!!" Some seniors cheered her on in unison.

At the beginning of this match, no one was on her side. The result was obvious and predictable since the one whom she challenged was Niou Masaharu, one of the seeded players of the famous Rikkai Dai Fuzoku Tennis Club.

"Don't get too cocky, young lady," Niou warned, "I won't show any mercy even if the opponent is a woman." With those words, he tossed the tennis ball into the air and directed a hard and fast shot at her.

Sakuno immediately dashed towards the direction where the ball was and it seemed like the girl was leaping over to counter it.

But she fell hard once again. For a few seconds, there was no sign of movement from the girl. It seemed like she had reached her limit.

The crowd cheered.

"Ryuzaki!! Stand up!!"

"Come on!! You can do it, Ryuzaki-san!!"

"Stand up!! Don't give up, Ryuzaki-kun!!"

Sakuno did not feel as if she could move anymore. She had reached her limit. The ground was too comforting, especially when her heavy eyelids refused to open. Even so, as she began to fall unconscious, she faintly heard voices calling her name.

'_What is that? There are many people calling me…'_

'_Granny, what have I got myself into…'_

_**Three days ago: **_

Standing at close proximity, he looked hostile and aggressive.

"All right," Niou demanded angrily, "explain!!"

All the students in class quickly moved away and gathered at the doorway. Even the fan girls zipped their mouth instantly when they witnessed the situation.

Sakuno found it much too difficult to look at him directly. It was not because she was frightened by his anger. She was unable to look directly at his handsome face that is just few inches away from her sight.

"Senpai…please don't do this to me…" she pleaded softly as she diverted her gaze away from him.

"Then, tell me," he insisted in the same angry voice, "what did you do to Bunta?!"

She shook her head vigorously.

"I…I've never thought of doing anything to Marui-senpai," she said feebly as she tried to look at him again, but only long enough to register the fact that he looked more angry than she had ever seen him, and it gave his features a dismaying suggestion of cruelty.

_Is he hearing any rumour about me hitting on Marui-senpai?_ Her face turns pale when she assumed that the trickster could have heard some untrue rumour.

Sakuno cried out when he gripped her arm, his fingers latched on with his strong grasp that was tight enough to make her wince in pain.

"I don't believe you!" He declared quietly but firmly "You're being too cagey by half, but I don't think it's good enough to cover up your evil deeds, now that I had this authenticable evidence with me right now!!"

Casting another hostile look at her, Niou released the girl before digging out a piece of evidence from his pocket.

Sakuno blinked for a moment, a hasty glance at the "evidence" which the trickster displayed in his palm.

"That was the candy…"

"Now, what excuses would you give me this time?" He prompted sarcastically.

"W…What happened?" Sakuno felt her heart lurch for a moment when she met his eyes. A dark slate-grey that frowned at her from the depth of those quite suitably angry looking eyes

"Are you trying my patience?! Ryuzaki!! I want an answer now!"

"I…I…"

Before the fierceness of his relentless prodding could completely overwhelm her, however, the jangling sound of the bell shattered the panicked situation.

Though everyone thought that the girl was saved by the bell, the irritated trickster refused to give up with his chastises.

"Let's go!!" Niou said. Sakuno felt a pair of strong hands pull her away, and before she realised what was happening, she was already taken away.

When the teacher entered the classroom, he was rather stunned to find that this place had turned into a busy bargaining store, with students talking and gossiping. Rikkai Dai was a school where majority of the students have self-awareness and self discipline, however, and the classroom silenced the moment they registered his presence.

When taking the attendance, he found that one was missing.

"Where's Ryuzaki-kun?" he asked.

The class remained silent. None of them dare to say a word of what had happened to Sakuno. Aside from the vice-captain of their school's tennis club; there was another whom the students feared most, and he was none other than the Trickster – Niou Masaharu.

And as for the teacher, he could have guessed what could have happened to the missing girl.

'So, she's with the Tennis Club again,' he sighed inwardly as he continued to mark the rest.

Sakuno strained against the brute strength of the trickster as he forcefully pulled her to leave with him. Despite her struggle however, she could not help but realise how warm the hand that held her so tightly was compared to his piercing eyes.

She sighed as she remembered the lunch break that she accidentally overheard the conversations of his fangirls and learned the reason behind Niou's resentment towards her.

"_Ne, ne, ne…did you see that?"_

"_Yeah, Niou-sama is so cruel towards the new girl!!"_

"_Though I do kind of dislike her at first since she got all the chances to be near to our princes, but, right now, I feel sorry for her" _

"_Hey Hatsumi!! What are you talking about? She's our rival, remember??" _

"_But…but…I don't see her as a threat??" _

"_She's definitely a threat!! Even Niou-sama cares about her." _

"_I didn't know that type of treatment can be classified as CARE" _

"_He must have hated her to core because she's the chairman's granddaughter" _

"_What? There's something which I wasn't told?? That's stingy!! Tell me!!!" another girl bugged in._

"_Natsuko-chan!! That topic is taboo!!"_

"_Who cares?! The truth is that our chairman attempted to disband the entire Tennis club. That's why Niou-sama hated both the chairman and anyone who has connection with him!!" _

_He has the right to be mad. But I could never imagine ojii-chan doing such a thing._ The thought drifted into her mind before she realized that their pace had increased.

"Se…sen…senpai…"

"Shut up!! I don't want to hear anything from you," he said briefly, impeded her from talking further.

"I'm sorry!!" She apologized in a quick streak before dropping her head again.

This had also made her comprehended that there was no way that he would ever listen to her and so she decided to save her breath and follow his pace.

It actually surprised Niou that Sakuno was able to keep up with him. He could feel the warm and softness of her tiny hand that rub against his skin.

_W…what warm and soft?! Stop having such stupid thoughts!! She's just a weakling!!_ He cursed himself inwardly.

When they reached the club house, Sanada, Yanagi and Yagyuu were already awaiting for his arrival.

"Just as what we had predicted, you abducted the girl," the data specialist remarked nonchalantly, his half closed eyes fixated on the girl whom the trickster had brought along with him.

"How is Bunta?" The trickster asked, ignoring Yanagi's comment.

"He's fine. Actually, he's doing well," the data specialist replied.

Upon the reassurance, Niou's eyes widen with disbelieve while Sakuno heaved a sigh. When she faced Niou's rage earlier, she had feared that Marui's condition could be worse.

"What?" Niou raised a brow.

"He's now practicing on D court," Yagyu added after a silent pause.

"That's impossible!! He passed out right after eating the candies!!" Niou continued to prompt further.

"He revived in an instant!!" Yanagi confirmed nonchalantly.

"Wait a minute!!" The trickster took few steps backward before he continues with his assumption. "Did Yukimura tell you guys to lie? I never know that in order to defend the girl, he could go as low as doing something like this!!"

"Nonsense!!" Sanada snapped.

"Why don't you go to Court D and see it yourself?" Yanagi suggested.

"Right…" he was chagrined to learn that the data specialist was testing his tolerance.

Nevertheless, as stubborn as he was, he turned towards the courts, pulling Sakuno with him. "You're coming with me!"

"W…why?" she asked feebly but she dare not to struggle.

"Before letting you off, I must confirm that Bunta is fine!!"

"But…but…" she tried to object but Niou's hostile glare stopped the words at the tip of her tongue.

"Oh…are you by any chance trying to run away from your conviction?? The fact is that, you are also not certain that those candies are safe for consumption, am I right??" he prompted.

The timid girl considered what Niou said. She had to admit that she had not felt completely certain. Perhaps she had been so petrified by the trickster's anger that she did not come to realise the fact that the recipe from Inui-senpai might have tasted extremely awful but they were the most effective supplements. There was no way that the recipe from Inui-senpai could be harmful.

Bracing herself with more courage she defended.

"I…I'll go with you," she said in a trembling tone, "I'm sure that Marui-senpai is doing fine."

Hearing Sakuno's brave words, Niou and the regulars were surprised by the courage she still had after all that had happened.

"How arrogant!! You'll regret it if he isn't!!" Niou snapped.

For a moment Sakuno wondered if she had gone too far in speaking in such a certain – and perhaps overconfident – manner; but the trickster did not seem to be flaring up. She breathed an inward sigh of relief.

Her heart leaped against when he walked past her without a word. The uncommunicative little gesture of his was not new to her. She quietly followed him.

As soon as they reached the court, Marui had already defeated his opponent for the second game of the match in less than half an hour.

"Marui-senpai is so strong!"

"Well, let's play one more match, Hinomaru-kun~" Marui prompted in a sing-song manner.

His opponent could simply shake his head in his exhaustion, lying on the ground, able to move.

"Senpai...please let me have a match with you," another junior approached Bunta and challenged him.

"Okay~" he flashed a toothy smile before switching back to his serious side, "I'll show no mercy. You better get yourself prepare for that!"

While the match continued, the rest of the seeded players observed quietly.

"Niou, what do you think?" Yanagi asked without looking at the trickster. He was currently busy jotting down all data on Marui.

"Isn't it that he's in his usual condition?" He replied casually and then paused for a moment. Something was not right about his team mates.

After few minutes of observation, he finally realized what was out of place.

"He's not chewing his gum," he said quietly, surprise evident in his tone.

"Isn't it amusing?" Yagyu asked as he joined the conversation.

"How could this be?"

"Perhaps it's because he ate the candies that Ryuzaki-san gave him," Yanagi reasoned. "The one who gave her the recipe should be Inui Sadaharu of Seigaku"

"Senpai…how did you know?" Sakuno was amazed by Renji's knowledge.

"Isn't that obvious that he's the only one who has such wittiness to come out with something that is beyond disgust and that can eventually made ones faint instantly?" Yanagi smirked while scribbling some notes into his data book.

"You mean the spectacled team manager of Seigaku?? Isn't he your friend? Yanagi-senpai" Kirihara asked curiously.

"You're right Akaya. When I looked at those weird colored candies, his face instantly came into my mind. But I have to admit that his creations are very effective for one's health."

For a moment, everyone wondered whether Yanagi's statement was a compliment or an insult.

Nevertheless, they all learned a few facts.

First and foremost, never eat anything offered by Sakuno. Secondly, disregard of how tempting the food might be, do not consume it at once. Third, it is confirmed that all health food have very disgusting taste!!

Just when the conversation was about to prolong to another heights, Niou locked the girl's head with his strong arm and pull her closer to him.

"I'm seriously mad," Niou said sinisterly. Those threatening tone of his is good enough to make her cry ten years worth of tears.

"If you knew that this candy would have such effects on Bunta, then why didn't you warn him beforehand?!" before he could get an answer from the girl; someone had already pulled Sakuno away from him.

"Niou, I didn't expect that you would go as far as dragging Sakuno-san to come with you…" A familiar voice alerted everyone.

"Yukimura?!!!"

"Yu…Yukimura-senpai?" Sakuno eyes widen when the Child of God embraced her in a protective manner.

'What a motherly figure' upon seeing how Yukimura protected Sakuno, almost everyone had the same thoughts and while looking at Yukimura again.

"Sakuno-san? Are you alright?" Yukimura asked, gazing at her in concern.

"I…I'm fine." Sakuno held her tears back, trying to calm herself as she replied.

"Yukimura…what are you doing here?" The displeased trickster turned away as he questioned his capture so no one would see his irritation due to the interruption.

"I'm here to see if Marui is alright and then I ended up seeing you bullying Sakuno-san," Yukimura replied calmly.

"I'm not bullying her…" he retaliated, "…I was only trying to make her realize that she's a weakling and to discomfort her through words..."

"That's called bullying," Jackal remarked.

"Who's bullying Sakuno-chan??!" Another energetic voice interrupted from behind.

"Bunta?" Jackal was quite surprised to see his partner maintaining his active mode even after finishing three one-set matches in a streak.

"Niou? Is it you again?" The self proclaimed genius pointed his index finger boldly at the trickster.

"Wait?! What do you mean by 'ME AGAIN'??" Niou pouted with disappointment, his two defined arms crossing in front of his chest.

"Have you forgotten that she poisoned you?!!!" Despite the fact that everyone is in favour of the girl, he tried his best to uphold his integrity.

"But I'm okay now!" Marui said with a bright toothy smile. "I can even win three matches in a streak!!"

In skeptical silence, Niou gazed away from the crowd.

"Niou, would you try not to tease her as much as you want?" Yukimura requested.

"No…" Knowing the captain well, Niou understands that he would not be satisfied with a negative reply.

"Unless she meets my expectations."

"Let me ask you... what is your expectation of a temporary manager?"

"I'm expecting the manager to be capable, competitive and enthusiastic. At the very least, the manager must not give trouble to the team," Niou replied, with nothing less than total seriousness.

"Fair enough. We do not tolerate inefficiency."

Those words struck Sakuno's heart heavily as she realised that she had not really fulfilled those requirements. Her heartbeats fasten, each note a thrill, sending cold shivers to her spine.

When Niou announced his standard of requirements, she seems to possess none of those traits. And her mood had hit the lowest point of the day.

Perhaps she was not fit for the temporary manager post after all, she thought sadly. Nothing seemed to have turned out right.

She thought she could change. She thought she could be accepted. But in reality, a stone will always be a stone; no matter how hard you polish it, it could never turn into a diamond.

Perhaps for someone like Yukimura who possesses the patience of a god could sometimes feel troublesome for taking care of someone like her.

Before she sulked deeper and deeper, a warm hand patted on one side of her shoulder; distracting her from brooding further.

"Sen…senpai," Sakuno lifted her head to look at the captain who gave her the usual smile that warmed her heart.

She could felt all her doubts and tension disappearing the moment when she saw his smile. It had always felt like this, in some mysterious way.

"I'm sure if it is Sakuno-san, this will be fine," he commented before diverting his attention back to the crowd again.

Sakuno wish she could comprehend what Yukimura had meant.

_Yukimura-senpai…I wish I could understand you._ For the past five minutes, she did not understand a single word. She felt utterly helpless and frightened. But Yukimura's words had giver her strength. She was starting to believe that there would definitely be a way out.

She smiled back. That smile showed Yukimura that the girl was giving her full trust to him.

"Niou, how about a one set match?" Yukimura proposed.

"You and me?? Impossible!!"

"No, your opponent would be Sakuno-san."

His statement had not only startled the regulars, but it also drew the attention of all by-passers who happened to overhear the whole conversation.

"Buchou?!" Jackal came forth to see if by any chance their team captain had made any slip.

While the rest of them were so hooked on with the debate among the regulars about Yukimura's proposal; the main protagonist is still not aware of the upcoming danger ahead of her.

It actually took her many minutes to digest the conversation. It was until then when she finally realized the predicament she was about to face.

"S…senpai…I…I'm not playing tennis," she said feebly.

"She's right. There's no way that a novice like her would win against me," Niou smirked.

"Yukimura, I'm sure this is just a misapprehension. There's no way…'

"I'm serious," the captain said and approached Sakuno, who in return tilted her head to face him.

"Buchou!! That's too much!!" Both Bunta and Jackal complained in unison.

"Senpai…" Sakuno's brows knitted together in confusion, although from the very beginning, Sakuno had always doubted if she would ever comprehend Yukimura and his deeds.

Was he an alliance or enemy? She did not know him well since they were acquainted just recently. Was he one of those who loved to see people in misery???

As for Yukimura, he could tell that Sakuno was starting to doubt him and his action.

He slowly raised his hands, holding both sides of Sakuno's shoulder, and smiled gently at her.

"I'm assuring you that it'll be alright," he said. "You must trust me."

His words had once again given her a new anticipation.

It took sometimes for her to debate and sort out her uncertainties; she has come to a decision.

She should not have doubted him in the first place. Ever since the day when she entered Rikkai Dai, he saved her, accepted her, and encouraged her to change for the better. There had not been even a slight hint of betrayal.

And why should she doubt him now. No, she mustn't. He was all that she can fully trust.

"I understand. I will take up the challenge," Sakuno declared.

"That's the good spirit," he complimented.

"Woman, it is best for you to know your limit," Niou warned.

"Yukimura, do you _really_ think she has a chance against me??" Niou asked blatantly.

"Nobody can tell where the future lies, so why don't we put this matter to a test?" Yukimura suggested with a smile.

There was no way Niou would back off from the challenge this time. After all, why should he? He was very confident he would win against her anyway.

"Yukimura, I accept this challenge, but instead of having one set match, I give her a special bargain. I'll let her win if she is able to return one ball from my service game."

Everyone's attention returned to their captain, waiting for his reply.

"Fine, but there are two conditions you must follow," Yukimura continued.

"What are they?"

"One, let's have the match in three days. This is to ensure that she have sufficient time to train herself and be prepared."

"That I can allow. If she loses, I'll kick her out of this club instantly."

"Secondly, if you happened to lose in this game, you must promise us that you'll change your attitudes towards Sakuno."

"You're on!! And if she loses; I'll kick her out"

"I don't need to hear that from you for the second time." Yukimura smirked.

At this moment, Sakuno did not know what her future was holding but she was willing to brace it with all her might.

_**Present: **_

"RYUZAKI!! RYUZAKI!! RYUZAKI!!" The tennis court was filled with the players cheering. The regulars watched the roaring crowd in amazement.

**In both the unconcerned present  
And even the still unseen next morning,  
Only these thoughts that can't be conveyed  
Are hidden in my heart.**

"**It was by chance," I laugh,  
As my voice pushes through.  
I'll reach the "other side"  
By believing in myself.**

"The uproar is really amazing," Jackal commented as he scanned the noisy crowd who had just converted themselves into Sakuno's supporters.

"Yukimura, that's enough, please ask them to stop," Bunta pleaded. His anxious expression startled Jackal. He had never seen Bunta behaving like this before. Worrying for someone other than their captain was something new for him.

"Calm down, Marui-senpai!" Kirihara went over to give his senior a little consolation.

"Bunta, please trust Sakuno-san. I'm sure she will be able to overcome this," Yukimura added, his serious eyes fixated at the court.

"I'm sure that Ryuzaki-kun will be alright," Yagyu said calmly "I'm sure she won't let us down; after all we've gone through all the troubles to train her, remember?"

"Moreover, it seems like the crowd had grown to care about Ryuzaki-kun very quickly," Jackal added in finality.

Sanada and Yanagi remain unruffled as they quietly observe the match.

After hearing all the comforting words from his teammates, Marui move closer to the training ground and he too cheered for Sakuno.

"Sakuno-chan!! Get up!! It's not time for you to sleep!! Get up!! Come On!!" He shouted.

Upon hearing the voice of his cheery teammate, Niou glared at him.

"Bunta!! What's the meaning of this!! After what she had done to you!! You're still cheering for her?"

"Sakuno-chan is trying her best. She went through all troubles to make me something which I'm fond of. There's no way I will hate her." Marui confessed bravely.

"I won't let her even have a chance to hit my service ball." Niou declared.

"Sakuno-chan!! Stand up!! Stand up now!!!"

**In both the unconcerned present  
And even the still unseen next morning,  
Only these thoughts that can't be conveyed  
Are hidden in my heart.**

**What I remember is that  
The wishes I want to grant  
Always continued to challenge me,  
Once more, just once more.**_'Sakuno…'_

'_Obaa-chan???'_

"_Obaa-chan" _

"_What is it Sakuno?" _

"_I think I would want to join tennis club after all." _

"_My, my…are you serious about that??" _

"_Yes I am. I want to try to play tennis." _

"_Could it be…ah; is it because of him? Echizen Ryoma?" _

"_Huhhhhh….I'm serious and please don't tease me anymore." _

"_Alright, but I have to warn you that training requires a lot of endurance and stamina so you better be well prepared." _

"_Yes, obaa-sama." _

"_Obaa-chan…tennis is an amazing game~" _

"_What did you say??"_

"_Nothing" _

**The thoughts that were lost  
Will change shape, but I'm sure that  
I'll take them back. Until that day comes,  
I will continue to search.**

**Even while you stumble and fall,  
Even when you're lost and troubled,  
Believe in the light of hope  
That lies before your gaze.**

"SAKUNO!!"

_Who's there? _

"Ryuzaki-san!! Stand up!! You can do it"

_I can hear all the voices. They are calling my name._

"Stand up!!"

_I can't!! I've reached my limit._

"Sakuno!! You can do it!!"

"Ryuzaki!! You must stand up now otherwise you'll lose the game."

"Sakuno-chan!! Don't give up!"

'I…I don't want to…I don't want to lose this game. God, please; please give me strength. Please bless me with more strength~'

Soon the cheering silent down when they saw the petite girl slowly got up on her feet again and when she finally stands on feet and get back to position; the cheering reaches its highest peak!

"She's finally up again!!!"

"Jackal!! Did you see that?!" Bunta was ecstatic the moment he saw Sakuno stand up again.

"Yes. She's really a strong willed girl"

"Our guidance on her is not wasted."

**  
"Hesitation" will close off  
Tomorrow.  
There is no one else -  
Come on, by yourself…**

In the future that I imagined,  
Sometimes, I lose my confidence,  
And I feel like  
It won't be granted again, but…

**I search for things to  
"Exchange" for the thoughts I lost.  
I make excuses, pretending not to know,  
And continue to search.**

Earlier on, there were only less than half of the spectators in this court that cheered for her and now, the number of people increased tremendously. At this moment; this girl had earned approvals from many tennis players as well as students of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

On the other hand; Niou was very much displeased of what was happening yet he was not stupid to learn that he is beginning to see the girl with another whole new viewpoint.

She was not as fragile as she seemed to be.

"Player Ryuzaki…" the umpire called out. "Do you still want to continue?"

"Y…yes, please allow me to continue this match," she replied weakly.

"You're not as weak as I had imagined but I won't let you win this game."

"I will definitely win," she declared confidently this time.

She must win. In spite of everything, there are many people who had been so generous to provide her with trainings and tactics. She believed that she owed Yagyu a great deal of favour for feeding her with tons of tactics on how to win against his partner, Niou.

"_Ryuzaki-kun, want to try out this tactic??" Yagyu asked._

"_This one??"_

"_Yeah!! If you know your opponent's weakness, you would be able to defeat your opponent easily. Here. Take these notes back home and memorize it well." Yanagi offered._

"_Thank you everyone."_

"_We're not doing this for you. We're doing this for Yukimura." _

**  
What I remember is that  
The wishes I want to grant  
Always continued to challenge me,  
Once more, just once more.**

I search for things to  
"Exchange" for the thoughts I lost.  
I make excuses, pretending not to know,  
And continue to search.

"OI!! How long are you planning to stay in your own fairytale world?" Niou was getting impatient again.

"I…I'm sorry." Sakuno apologized and quickly resumed her defensive mode.

"Game point: 40 to love!! Niou to serve!!!" The umpire announced.

"This is the end!! Bye-bye! Troublesome girl!!" He tossed the ball high in the air and before hitting it, something which his find very interesting was lingering among the crowd that had caught his attention.

Due to the slight loss of concentration, Niou was not able to direct a perfect serve. The ball hit the net.

"FAULT!!" The umpire called.

"Just now…" In order to confirm that he's not seeing things, Niou requested for time out.

He then walked towards the crowd and found that Bunta was hiding something behind him.

"Bunta…" he demanded "…what was that that you were hiding at your back?"

"N…nothing in particular."

"Show it to me."

"No. Unless you promise to let Sakuno-chan off."

"Don't be so childish! This is a challenge and she accepted it in the first place. Now…show me that thing that you're hiding from me."

"I don't want to!"

"Didn't you show it out to me while I was in the middle of the match?"

Without further asking, Niou immediately jumped over to attack Bunta in order to extract the 'thing' that he's hiding, the 'thing' that had caught the trickster's interest.

The havoc had totally shocked everyone in witness. Where had all their "Cool and Spicy" image had gone to??

Some fan-girls even cry over the unwanted-to-watch scene of their idols.

And before Niou could get his hand on what he want; the time-keeper announced the end of the time-off and that had earned a glare from the trickster.

"I'm not going to let her win so don't do something stupid like this again," he warned before heading back to the court.

The umpire ensured that both players are ready before he announced the game to restart again.

"40 to Love!! Niou second serve."

Seeing that Niou was about to serve the ball, Bunta quickly pull out the 'thing' that would distract Niou; however, this time it did not work since the trickster shut his eyes when he served.

"I won't fall for the same trick twice!!" He announced arrogantly.

Just when Niou thought that he could finally end this, confidently he tosses the ball high up in the air again but something happened and that was totally out of his prediction. He never thought that his partner; Yagyu would take side on Sakuno and go against him.

"Ryuzaki-kun!! Do it now!!!" Yagyu called out loudly.

Petrified by Yagyu's sudden outburst, Niou's sprung open and looked at Sakuno. Upon receiving the signal, Sakuno hesitantly but clearly spoke the sentence that broke Niou's second service.

"**KANAGAWA SUPA IS SELLING WAGYU BEEF IN BARGAIN!!!!" **

"WHAT?!?!!!!!!!!!!!" Another shock hit Niou. The ball dropped in front of him as the umpire announced the final result.

"Double fault!!! Service over!! 15 to 40!!"

"What was that just now?" Niou's mind went completely blank for a moment.

"Sakuno-chan won!!! She did it!!" Bunta leaped up and down among the happy crowd before dashing over to the court to approach Sakuno.

The cheery player lifted Sakuno up and twirl around the court while congratulating her.

Although the others also wish to congratulate the girl, however when the regulars are on their way to the court, they give way for their entrance.

Jackal immediately went over to stop Bunta from twirling around with Sakuno. He was afraid that his partner might go as far as tossing the girl up in the air.

It was all thank to Sanada who knocked on Bunta's red head that he'd stop instantly. By that time when Bunta finally let go of Sakuno, she can't even stand steady on her feet leaving alone Yanagi to support her stance.

"Huwahahahha…" She began to mutter strange and instinctive words.

"It all thanks to you that she's like this now!" Jackal said agitatedly "Ryuzaki-san?! Are you okay?"

"Huwhahahahaha…"

"Hee…hee…hee. I guess I was overjoyed..." Bunta muttered, his face flushing up in embarrassment.

"It's really lucky that she had win the match," Yagyu commented.

"Although this method defiles our usual winning strategies," Yukimura mused despondently.

"That is why I was quite skeptical to leave the plans to the others," Sanada added.

"As a professional player, shouldn't Niou learn not to get distracted by his surroundings?" Renji responded while scribbling some notes.

"You're right." Both Yukimura and Sanada agreed in unison.

Although Niou hate losing to Sakuno just like that, but he did not complain further and admit the defeat.

Right now he is more concern on the flyers which Bunta still refuses to give away.

TBC

**Chapter 8: Strawberry Shortcake is a love message. **

AN:Minna-sama, gokigenyo~ It's been decade since my last updates. Hmmm....guess aside from apologizing with all my heart; I don't know what else to say anymore. I'm so happy to receive so many supports from all of you. This is the best encouragement for me. The only problem is me who had recently changed job, adapting to new environment, feeling a down due to my bad relationship with my superior. That is why I'm taking very little time to write fiction. Nevertheless I don't wish to let this story hang in just here. I want to continue. I hope all of you would understand and of course I'm trying my best to keep my job and to please my boss and at the same time I want to keep on writing.

I sincerely hope that all my friends here would keep on supporting me till the end.

A big thanks to Yukisana-sama for spending her precious time to check and beta-read my work. Yukisana-sama had given me lots and lots of comments!!! I love you!!!!!

I'm sorry for all the shortcomings, and also apologies for not being able to write thank you note to all who read and review; to all my close friends who constantly send me messages filled with love. I'm sure you all know who you are.

A reply to sakurablossom18: Yeah, I think this story somehow have some similarities with YamaNade. I'm supposed to write something which is more similar to Gintama XD

The encouragement is the best thing I've ever receive. I hope my apology is being accepted.

I hope the next chapter would be filling with pinkish love, chaos, parody, comedic and etc and etc. My initial plan is to make this a funny, parody story and I'd plot out of the boundary.

Mi-chan loves all of you.

Till then,

Gokigenyo, mi-chan yori~


	8. Strawberry Shortcake is a love message

**Title: Once upon a time a Shy Musume**

Genre: Humor/Romance/Drama

Pairing: Yukimura/Sakuno

Scene: Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku

Note: For Japanese/Chinese, surname/family name/last name comes first.

Cast Introduction:

Ryuzaki Sakuno (1st Year): Our female protagonist who starts her senior high school life in Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Yukimura Seiichi (3rd Year): Our male protagonist; labeled as the most beautiful man, prince charming of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku.

Sanada Genichirou (3rd Year): Vice captain of Rikkai Dai Tennis Club. Consider the second best player after Yukimura; one of the three demons, the Emperor. **He loves anything that has connection with pink XD**

Yanagi Renji (3rd Year): One of the three demons. Like Seigaku's Inui Sadaharu he is a data specialist. He's quiet and soft spoken.

Niou Masaharu (3rd Year): Scariest player of Rikkai Dai Fuzoku. He's a narcissist and likes strategic and cunning girls, hates weaklings. I've decided to make him into a tsundere prince!

Yagyuu Hiroshi (3rd Year): Is known as "The Gentleman" for his polite demeanor. He never reveals his dark secret to his teammates that he's actually a popular shoujo mangaka by the penname of YAHIRO. An addicted Shounen Jump reader!

Marui Bunta (3rd Year): He's a self declared genius, cheery otherwise arrogant player. And because of his arrogantnature, he speaks differently, contradicting his real feelings. He has stamina issue and was frequently seen chewing gums or takes sweets to obtain more energy. He's the fourth person who came to accept Sakuno despite of her clumsiness. The second person who got infected by her bad luck, maybe?

**Kuwahara Jackal (3rd Year): Half Brazilian. He's the closest Rikkai Dai's member to be able to get close to Sakuno and not being infected by her bad luck. Maybe it's because he's bald and it helps to bound off evil spirits, maybe? **

Kirihara Akaya (2nd Year). I'm still not too sure how to portray these characters; but since it said paranoid; it couldn't be possible for me to make them like original; I'm expecting OOCness.

Standard Disclaimer: Tenpuri belongs to Konomi-sensei.

WARNINGS ALERT:

Sakuno-centric. Please do not continue if you're not a big Sakuno fans.

Could be **SUPER OOC**, a little **PARANOID**, readers are advised to stop reading if you find this disturbing.

Contain spoiler of the final chapter of Tenipuri.

Ratings might change depending on progress of the storylines, hints of mature themes.

"…" denotes speech

'…' denotes thoughts

"_Italics_" _Very soft speech_

_'Italics' Dreams/Flashbacks_

**Edited: 2/7/11**

* * *

**Chapter 8: Strawberry Shortcake is a love message.**

* * *

Outside the double story apartment, the long, narrow steel balcony was deserted with flickering fluorescent lamps giving off a rather creepy vibe.

However, among the units of apartments, one of them which were leased to a famous mangaka was so lively and energetic.

There were three people with two assistants rushing around in the compacted living and one mangaka who was sitting still at his work desk drawing some manga scripts.

"YAHIRO-SENSEI! The deadlines!" one of them exclaimed frantically.

"Oi, cool down. You'll distract Yahiro-sensei." said another man when he patted lightly on his colleague's shoulder.

" Kaneyama, Aoi-kun! Don't slack off!"

"Ink these, Kaneyama!"

"Yes sir!"

"Aoi! Apply screen tones on these!"

"Roger!"

"There is still half an hour before the deadlines! Guys! We've got to work faster!"

"HAI! SENSEIIIIII!"

It's been a hectic night for the popular mangaka and his two assistants. In the nick of time, they managed to wrap up everything and passed the completed work to their editor.

"Thank you very much, Yahiro-sensei. I hope that all the readers would come to love the latest chapter of Strawberry Shortcake."

The mangaka with a nerdy spectacle gave a nod before shutting the door before the editor.

"As usual he's cold and unsociable! Not cute at all." sighed the editor when being given cold shoulder by the mangaka.

"Thanks for the hard work! Sensei!" the two assistants bowed with utmost respect towards their idol.

"Thanks for the hard work." he replied bleakly and with that he gathered all his stuffs and get ready to leave his workplace.

"Sensei? You're leaving already?"

He nodded in reply.

'_There'll be golf practicing tomorrow morning.'_ he thought inwardly.

Till date, he had never revealed his real identity to anyone. He preferred to keep it anonymous. His life as a professional golfers as well as high school tennis players; all these he had kept it from his editors, assistants as well as readers.

For being the most promising mangaka of the era, this would be the darkest secret for him. People who love reading his works were very eager to know how YAHIRO really looks like in person. No one had ever seen that because of his superior skills in disguise.

"Sensei, please allow us to escort you back!" one of them suggested.

"No. I'm fine going back alone." He declined immediately.

There goes another hectic night for our RikkaiDai's gentleman, Yagyuu Hiroshi.

At the moment he was planning on how to gather more information for his next installment of Strawberry Shortcake.

"I wonder what kind of ideas she will be providing me next."

* * *

In that spacious and quiet clubhouse, only two detainees that were left behind and they were Sakuno and Hiroshi.

Due to the fact that Hiroshi had refused to join the others for training, he was punished and that he was told to babysit Sakuno. She was assigned to tidy up the clubhouse.

In reality, that was what he had wanted; to be left alone with Sakuno in order to accomplish his information gathering. For the past hours, he had been secretively spying over Sakuno.

His latest manga, _Strawberry Shortcake_ had turned to be a huge success. He received tons of feedbacks and according to characters popularity poll results; the main female protagonist had received the most votes from readers.

'Thanks to my new subject, Ryuzaki Sakuno.' the corner of his mouth lifted as he smiled contentedly.

There were few good reasons for him to use Sakuno's characteristics for his female protagonist.

Rumor had it that Yukimura was attacked by the fellow female members and hence the tennis club, especially Sanada, had shunned all female students from the club and not to mention of forbidding them to join the club. All female students were told to keep a distant from their captain.

He had thanked God for sending Sakuno to him. He was also very fond of her diffident and yet wobbly qualities.

He had also decided to use her after reading some comments which he recently received from his readers.

In the past; he had used Yukimura Seiichi; their captain with very beautiful androgynous features for modeling his female protagonist role.

Although the feedbacks did turned out quite remarkable; some readers did commented that the female protagonist was portrayed with less feminine traits despite of that serene princess-like look.

'_She's more like a prince! I fell in love with her for instance!' _One of his female readers from XXX city comment had made Hiroshi's vein popped.

'Prince? Hmph…He is the King afterall! The Demon King!'

Hiroshi had then diverted his attention back to his newly found love; the Goddess of Chaos, Ryuzaki Sakuno.

The girl did look angelical when she does her work calmly. Those beautiful features of hers were so princess like too.

Thanks to the fairy godmother…no…the prince of the story, Yukimura Seiichi; who had made the right choice; just by cutting off the bangs that covered almost half of her face. Who would have thought that such beautiful features that was hidden by those thick bangs.

Yet, like the unpredictable storm; she could turn things around effortlessly. Her power to destroy things was unrestrained that they had gone beyond her control at sometimes.

Perhaps she was really like what she claimed; a young lady who was cursed with bad luck.

Well… at least for the past weeks she'd make quite a few changes; she was not as clumsy as before, Hiroshi mused inwardly.

And that was a big help for Hiroshi to complete his weekly manga installment on time.

Hiroshi had especially liked the part where his beautiful princess was with the prince; they looked picture perfect together. So the Prince Charming and Snow White does exist in reality.

Seeing such moments had inspired Hiroshi to come out with more romantic plots. He had believed that the two of them were sent by the God of Manga to relieve him from the troubles he had whenever he had to update an installment.

Hiroshi also believed that it wasn't by chance that the prince had met the princess, got injured and the two ended up stuck together. This was what he would call "Fate".

Sometimes he also noticed that the prince would keep his gaze fixated on the girl as if he doesn't want her to fade away from his sight.

He also noticed that the prince had smiled more brilliantly whenever he was with the princess.

Every day, with her, he couldn't help but smile; Hiroshi sworn that as if the prince's actor's mask was totally ripped open in front of the diffident princess.

The prince who had almost lose his reason to live; is now being seen by many, as if he was already opening up the door of future.

For him and for her…

With the two being seen together; we like as if they were soaring high to an unknown world; his hands holding against hers as if they were begging hers not to let go.

The prince had vowed to hold onto the bonds that they have, towards the place of their dream.

* * *

Hiroshi suddenly snapped back into reality when he felt that somebody was tapping on his shoulder.

He was stunned to have realized the fact that just by staring at her; it actually stimulates his brain and gives him so much inspiration. All those ideas were like flowing all over his mind.

"Ano…se…senpai…" Sakuno called.

"What is it…Ryuzaki-kun?" Hiroshi immediately fixed his façade to hide the fact that he was startled by her calling. He was able to regain his usual composure quickly.

"I'm sorry….but I've been calling you for few times already and you didn't response." she said quietly and her last few sentences almost had gone with the wind.

"I'm sorry, Sakuno-kun. I was in my thoughts." He smiled at her.

"I'm glad you're alright." She smiled back.

It did actually make many people wonder why only towards Hiroshi and Jackal that Sakuno was able to act normally. More surprising was that; she was talking to both of them face to face without suffering from nosebleed, dizziness or just black out instantly.

"Say, just now you were calling me; is there anything that you would need from me?"

"Ah…yes….I wanted to clean up the area around here; but I'm afraid that it will get too dusty later. Senpai, is it okay for you to wait outside?"

"You're done with the other areas?"

"Yes…"

Hiroshi looked around the club house. It was gleamed in the sunlight. The floor, benches and windows were sparkling clean.

Few hours ago it was quite messy and a little bit dirty. Usually the club house would be well maintained. Due to the fact that most players were busy training for the upcoming tournament; they neglected the cleaning part.

They thought that without Yukimura, the players could actually relax a bit; never would they have thought that the two demons were slaves' drivers.

Even without Yukimura, both Sanada and Yanagi had set up additional training programs for all players. Their training could be described as worst than intense! It was suffocating; more like digging one's grave.

Some says that the other two were the demon of the demons.

"Good job, Ryuzaki-kun." Hiroshi felt that she deserved to be praised. It was like what Yukimura had told them before that this girl was a dedicator. She does everything wholeheartedly.

"T…Thank you." Another bright and cheery smile lit her face.

At this moment, Hiroshi had wished that the others would be able to see that sweet smile of hers.

All this while, she was facing difficulties in interacting with others in a proper way. She was so shy that she would stammer continuously, and then followed by a pair of shaky feet. If that person is more than 10 inches away from her; she could be suffering from massive nose bleed and finally she would drop down for the count.

Undoubtedly, she would be the most attractive young lady if those unmerited habits of hers were gone.

Hiroshi had to admit that he was slightly smitten by her beauty.

On the other side, Sakuno had felt that something was flashing through Hiroshi's lens that made her shiver in panicky. She was able to distinguish the fact that Hiroshi was not his usual self.

Was he too being affected by her bad luck? That was what she had been worrying about. That kind of worries disheartened her the most.

In the past, she had brought chaos to certain someone she was very fond of. That feeling that was supposed to have deepened into love was tainted and was evolved into repugnance. The past had been painful that the damage inflicted to both parties was beyond repair.

Sakuno couldn't stop her body from shivering. Her hands voluntarily went up to hold each side of her shoulders as she curled herself together.

Hiroshi had caught the sudden change of aura in Sakuno. She looked terribly pale and fragile. He felt that there was something in her mind that had brought her to such a state. He felt that there was the need to do something quick before it got worst.

Judging from her current stance, he had decided that by just patting lightly on her shoulder or pushing her lightly in the back wouldn't be effective enough to bring her back to reality. He had got to use his secret weapon.

When Sakuno immersed deeper into her dark past, before her; there appeared a bright gleam of light.

In a glimpse, the radiance was able to take over darkness.

Appeared before Sakuno, was a handsome young man with a pair of beautiful light grey orbs. He was only inches away from her face.

"Ryuzaki-kun, it's your fault that you were so defenseless."

She immediately recognized that voice; it belongs to her senior, Yagyuu Hiroshi.

"Y…Yagyuu-senpai…?" her soft voice trailed off when she felt his hands that had reached up to bring her close stopped in the midair. He stroked a hand down her cheek and caressed it gently.

"So…shall I do that to you now?" his teasing was merciless.

For instance, Sakuno's body froze as if she was spell bounded. She was almost reaching her limit. The current Hiroshi was too radiant for her to handle.

She was overwhelmed! She had never thought that Hiroshi was capable in giving off such an aura. His aura was even darker than black. He was like a conqueror, emperor of the night!

What was that that had caused such a big change on his aura? Something was so out of place.

Her head was spinning; she also felt her blood rushed towards her face.

Just when she was expecting the worst case scenario; Hiroshi broke into a soft chuckled. The laughter increased in decibels.

"Ryuzaki-kun! That expression of yours was priceless!"

Now that was really mortifying. One minute he used his charm to mock her, the next minute he had broke into laughter.

It seemed like the old Yagyuu was back again. So that was how it works, the pair of thick lens was his weapon to conceal his beauty.

With the hotness still lingering on her ears, the diffident girl didn't know how she was supposed to react. All she did was striding around the room, circled it twice. He'd put his hands on her, he'd stroke her cheeks. HE WAS SEDUCING HER!

"Calm down, Ryuzaki-kun. I had yet to do anything terrible to you yet. I was only giving you a slight push in the back so that you could come back to reality."

What he had claimed awhile ago was able to stop Sakuno from circling around the club house. She stopped and stared at him with disbelieve.

Obviously what he said was not too convincing.

"You see, I kind of sensed that you were suddenly freaked out. I thought that there's a need to do something in order to bring you back to reality."

This time Sakuno glanced at the gentleman through her lashes. It was true as what he claimed that she was suddenly sucked in by the darkness of her dreadful past.

Considering that she'd actually came to know Hiroshi for quite sometimes now; he lived up to his alias 'The Gentleman'; she doubted that would ever take advantage of her just for his own entertainment.

She believed in him.

"I'm sorry, senpai. And thank you. I'm fine now."

"I'm sure you are."

At this moment, Hiroshi was curious. He had wanted to prod her to tell him what had happened to her. What had caused her to become in such a state, a state of fear of losing something.

Yet, he knew that this was not the right moment. He had decided to endure the curiosity and wait until the right time when she was ready to open up to all of them.

"Shall I help you with the clean up, Ryuzaki-kun?"

She immediately shook her head to decline his offer.

"Oh…no…no! It would be too rude to have a senior to help me with my assignment."

"If that's the case, then perhaps I should leave the club house for bit as you were suggesting earlier. Well, I might as well go over to the training ground and check out the progress of our players."

"Senpai? You're going to the ground?"

"Yes."

"Will it be okay if I ask you to help me to bring something over too?"

"What was it?"

Frantically, Sakuno rushed towards to the section where her cabinet was allocated. She opened up the door and carefully took out a three layered bentou box.

"Ryuzaki? What are these?"

"Senpai, please help me to bring these and share with the others. I baked these strawberry shortcakes myself."

"Strawberry shortcakes?"

She nodded.

"That's very kind of you, Ryuzaki-kun, but…"

"Please trust me. I didn't put any weird ingredients in it. These are genuine desserts!"

At the moment, Hiroshi was once again startled. She was able to look at him; those eyes that shows her sincerity and determination.

"My apology, Ryuzaki-kun." He smiled again "I think all of them would come to love the desserts that you'd prepared for us."

With that he claimed the bentou box from Sakuno.

"T…thank you very much!" with that Sakuno bowed at ninety degrees before Hiroshi.

"We should be the one who should be thanking you. I'm sure that aside from Marui-san; Sanada-san and Yukimura-san would definitely come to like this."

"Re….really?"

"Of course. Didn't you know that Strawberry Shortcake is a love message?" he muttered inaudibly at last.

"You said something, senpai?"

"I was saying that they'll definitely love these."

"Tha…thank you."

Upon hearing the compliment she had received from Hiroshi, Sakuno's face turned flushing red in few seconds and that she couldn't contain the joy in her heart that it was expressively displayed on her face as she smiled coyly at him.

For the second time Hiroshi had wished that everyone could see the beauty that this young diffident lady possessed.

He was pretty sure that they would get to see this. She had gradually making progress. With the help of Yukimura and the others, she will surely blossomed into a beautiful cherry blossoms just like her given name; Princess of Cherry Blossom.

* * *

_'Yukimura-san, I'm predicting that in the near future; you'll have to ready yourself for more competition, as the girl is becoming more and more attractive each day.'_

"Hiroshi? You were saying something just now?" Yukimura asked.

"No."

_"Hey, have you guys ever heard of the saying that Strawberry Shortcake is a message of love?"_

"Was that you who was talking? Hirochin?" This time Niou asked.

"No."

_"These desserts; Ryuzaki-kun had specially made it for someone special."_

"What? Are you talking to me? Hiroshi?" Marui asked.

"No."

"You're so weird today. Did anything happen to you?" Jackal asked.

"I think so too." Yanagi said.

"Maybe he was cursed by Sakuno's bad luck!" Akaya suggested jokingly.

"Guys, leave him alone." Sanada said.

_"I'm sure the next installment of Strawberry Shortcakes would become more interesting."_

"HIROSHI!"

TBC…

**AN: Finally! I did it! I did it! I kept this story alive! This was my fifth edition. I've written the same chapters for 5 times, each time a different version. It's very difficult for me to write this part. The first edition was considered the best but the data was gone when our PC encountered malfunctions. Along with my hard disk, the old PC was beyond repair.**

**I have to thank you brother for buying me a new laptop so that I can continue writing and drawing.**

**I also want to thank everyone for their reviews and adding this story to their alert/favorite list. I showed my family these wonderful messages and they were very supportive. I think this could be the reason why he had decided to get me a new laptop. **

**I know that this story was on hiatus for very long time. I apologized for the shortcomings. I don't want to present anything that was done halfheartedly. **

**As I mentioned that this chapter I've actually edited five times; I kind of preferred this version than the rest; so I've decided to post this up!**

**Once again, thank you for reading this story.**

**Hope that you'll come to enjoy this story as much as I enjoy writing this.**

**Please read and review.**

**Dewa…gokigenyo.**

**mi-chan yori~**


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